Ferronickel sulfidation - A solution to suppyling the battery market?

Abstract

Historically, global nickel production has been driven by demand for stainless steel, which has represented the majority of the nickel market. However, battery metals are becoming increasingly more relevant in our global response to combat greenhouse gas emissions, as many of our industries move towards electrification, including the automotive industry. The demand for electric vehicles (EVs) will only continue to increase, and the supply of nickel sulfate is a pressing issue that needs to be resolved. While there are many investments being made to increase Class I nickel availability, the expected growth in the EV market may result in short-term supply shortages. This supply issue could be alleviated by ferronickel (FeNi) producers diverting a portion of their output to produce a nickel matte that can then be further processed into nickel sulfate. This paper reviews the methods currently practiced in industry and discusses the operational and environmental implications of producing matte from FeNi.