Investigation of processing technology of Southern Urals oxidized nickel ores for marketable ferronickel production in bubble furnace

Currently, the processing technologies of oxidized nickel ores are characterized by multistage and the use of expensive raw materials, which significantly affects the cost of the final product. The experience of Russian manufacturers, such as “Yuzhuralnickel” and PJSC “Ufaleynickel”, has confirmed that the current technology does not allow to achieve economic efficiency under the circumstances. Basis of the technology of these enterprises was mine matte smelting at shaft furnace. Due to the high coke consumption (20 – 30 tons per 1 ton of Nickel), the cost of nickel produced in this case was so high that it made the technology economically inefficient in today’s market conditions. Nowadays, on the international market of ferronickel there is a downward trend in the share of high-grade nickel in nickel alloys consumption due to the increase in production of crude ferronickel and metallized forms with reduced nickel content. The solution of the problem can be the development of a new, more energy-efficient technology for oxidized nickel ores processing. The chair “Energy-Efficient and Resource-Saving Industrial Technologies” of NUST “MISIS” has developed an innovative technology of processing of complex ores and industrial waste in the furnace of bubbling type PM6 (Process MISIS–6). The paper presents a brief description of the technology and the experiments results of two-stage technology for the production of commercial ferronickel from oxidized nickel ores of theSouthern Urals. 

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