Sulfides Formation in Carbothermic Reduction of Saprolitic Nickel Laterite Ore Using Low-Rank Coals and Additives: A Thermodynamic Simulation Analysis

In this paper, a systematic thermodynamic analysis of carbothermic reduction of saprolitic nickel laterite ore was carried out. Different carbon sources—such as pure C, sub-bituminous, and lignite—were used for the carbothermic reduction at 1000 °C (1273 K). The effect of the different additives—suc...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Minerals (Basel) 2019-10, Vol.9 (10), p.631
Main Authors: Harjanto, Sri, Rhamdhani, M. Akbar
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Additives
Carbon
Carbon sources
Carbothermic reactions
carbothermic reduction
caso4 addition
Coal
Computer simulation
Encapsulation
fes addition
Heavy metals
Iron
Iron sulfides
Laterites
Lignite
Liquid phases
Mass transfer
Materials recovery
Metals
Mineral reserves
Mineralogy
na2s addition
na2so4 addition
Nickel
Particle size
Recovery
Reduction
Reduction (metal working)
s addition
saprolitic nickeliferous
Simulation
Simulation analysis
Sodium sulfate
Sodium sulfide
sub-bituminous
Sulfides
Sulfur
Temperature
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Summary:In this paper, a systematic thermodynamic analysis of carbothermic reduction of saprolitic nickel laterite ore was carried out. Different carbon sources—such as pure C, sub-bituminous, and lignite—were used for the carbothermic reduction at 1000 °C (1273 K). The effect of the different additives—such as S, FeS, Na2S, Na2SO4, and CaSO4—was also systematically evaluated. The thermodynamic calculations suggested that the use of low rank coals (sub-bituminous and lignite) do not significantly affect the nickel grade and nickel recovery, but affect the total metals recovery. The presence of S in these C-sources promoted the formation of sulfides. At 1000 °C (1273 K), only a small amount of C-sources (C, sub-bituminous, lignite) are needed to significantly metallize the nickel in the laterite, i.e., between 4–6 wt %. The additives S, FeS, Na2S, Na2SO4, and CaSO4 were predicted to promote the formation of liquid sulfides, and at the same time reduce the formation of the (Fe,Ni) alloy, thus reducing the nickel and total metals recovery. Therefore, consideration is needed to balance the two aspects. The calculations predicted that S, Na2SO4, and CaSO4 additions provided an increase in the nickel grade; while FeS and Na2S reduced the nickel grade.
ISSN:2075-163X
2075-163X
DOI:10.3390/min9100631