How to Extract Nickel From Cobalt Sludge
Nickel and cobalt are metals with different chemical and physical properties. Knowledge of these properties is essential if you want to separate the two metals. Extracting the metals from one another can be done using two methods. The first method is where nickel and cobalt mixture is separated if the two mixtures have been co-precipitated and occur in solid form. They can also be separated if found in a mixture of cobalt and nickel ions where there are no other ions that can interfere with the reaction.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Mix the sludge with an alkali hydroxide. A solution containing water and the two metals is formed. The compounds formed can be cobalt hydroxide, oxide or even a carbonate and corresponding compounds of nickel.
-
2
Contact the pregnant leach solution from the sulfide precipitation circuit with the stripped organic in a premix tank. Transfer the resulting emulsion through a pipe reactor to gain the additional retention time.
-
-
3
Scrub the manganese off from the sludge as most ores contain a high percentage of manganese. Scrub off the manganese and extract the cobalt and nickel metals.
-
4
Recycle the solution back to the pregnant leach solution and reload the organic solution. Mix it with a stripping solution containing sulfuric acid for cobalt-selective stripping. Stop the mixing process after 60 seconds
-
5
Allow the solution to settle as the cobalt is selectively stripped from the organic solution. Increase the temperature for more efficient stripping. Get your pure nickel.
-
1
References
- Photo Credit Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images
