Amax Incorporated

Cvetko B Nikolic

Donald R Hodges

William G Sherwood

Weldon P Zundel

Robert S Rickard

Paul B Queneau

John M Laferty, Jr

Gustavo A Meyer

John R Carlberg

Franklin F Clark

A fluid bed electrolysis process is provided for the recovery of nickel from nickel-containing solution, e.g., leach solution, in which a fluid bed of substantially pure nickel particles or pellets of size ranging from about 150 to 2000 microns is employed, the fluid bed being preferably formed of reduced nickel oxide, such as hydrogen-reduced nickel oxide.

Nickel electrowinning using reduced nickel oxide as a fluidized cathode

A process is provided for leaching nickeliferous sulfide material, such as NiS precipitate and thermally activated nickel sulfide material, e.g., nickel matte, the process comprising subjecting nickeliferous sulfide material in the finely divided state to leaching in hydrochloric acid of concentration ranging from about 3 N to 8 N at a temperature of over 50.degree. C., the temperature and acid concentration being selected to dissolve at least about 50% by weight of the total contained nickel.

Dissolution of nickeliferous sulfide material in HCl

A fluid bed electrolysis system and process are provided for efficiently removing electroplatable metal ions from an electrolyte, the system utilizing a cell having an axially disposed anode surrounded by a cathode, the anode being partitioned from the cathode by a porous diaphragm. The porous diaphragm defines an anode chamber surrounded by an annular cathode chamber, the annular cathode chamber being adapted to support a fluidizable cathode bed of electrically conductive particulate material, the system having electrolyte circulating means for recirculating electrolyte through said cell and for maintaining said electrically conductive particulate material in an electrochemically active fluidized state, including means for disengaging gas bubbles from said circulated solution formed during electrolysis.

Electrowinning using fluidized bed apparatus

A fluid bed electrolysis cell and system are provided for efficiently extracting electroplatable metal ions from an electrolyte, the cell employed having preferably a plurality of anodes and cathodes concentrically disposed relative to each other, each of the anodes being partitioned from each of the cathodes by a porous diaphragm such as to define a plurality of anode chambers and cathode chambers. Each of the cathode chambers are adapted to support a fluidizable cathode bed of electrically conductive particulate material, e.g., powdered nickel, copper, and the like.

Cell with multiple anode-cathode chambers for fluid bed electrolysis

A method is provided for separating cobalt from a nickel solution containing cobalt in the cobaltous state and an ammonium salt comprising subjecting said solution containing at least 0.2 grams per liter of ammonium ion to ozonation while maintaining the pH thereof from about 4.5 to 6, until said cobalt has been oxidized to the cobaltic state and simultaneously precipitating said cobalt in the cobaltic state at a temperature ranging from about 10.degree. to 90.degree. C.

Separation of cobalt from nickel by ozonation in the presence of

Selenium is removed from copper electrolytes by adding a substance selected from the group consisting of metals above copper in the electromotive series, excluding alkali metals, such as nickel powder, cobalt powder and iron powder. Sodium sulfide can also be used along with a subsequent addition of ferric sulfate. The amount of the reactive substance added should be sufficient to reduce the selenium content to below 2 ppm.

Precipitation of selenium from copper electrowinning solutions

A method is provided for separating nickel and cobalt from a cobalt-nickel precipitate, the cobalt being in the cobaltic state. The method comprises dissolving the precipitate in an ammonium sulfate solution containing NH.sub.3, acidifying the solution to a pH of about 1.5 to 3.0 and then cooling the solution to produce a nickel-ammonium sulfate precipitate highly enriched in nickel. The precipitate is separated from the solution and the solution passed through an ion exchange column selective to the removal of nickel, the solution remaining containing said cobalt substantially free of nickel, the cobalt solution being then sent to cobalt recovery.

Nickel-cobalt separation

A method is provided for enriching nickel in a nickel-cobalt solution to a nickel-to-cobalt ratio of over 2000:1, wherein an aliquot portion of the solution is removed, the nickel precipitated from said aliquot portion in the nickelous state, the nickelous precipitate thereafter oxidized to the nickelic state and the oxidized nickel precipitate then mixed with the remaining nickel-cobalt solution to oxidize the cobalt therein to the cobaltic state which precipitates from the solution, thereby highly enriching the solution in nickel.

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Golden, CO, United States of America

Cvetko B Nikolic