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The Extraction of Silica from Nickel Laterite Ore by Alkaline Hydrothermal Process

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Abstract

Silica was extracted from nickel laterite ore by hydrothermal process with sodium hydroxide as reaction assistant. The effects of reaction temperature, reaction time, and NaOH-to-ore mole ratio on the extraction rate of silica were investigated by a single-factor experiment. The optimal reaction conditions for the preparation of silica were obtained as follows: reaction temperature 250 °C, reaction time 2 h, NaOH-to-ore mole ratio 1.2:1. Under these conditions, the extraction rate of silica could reach more than 98%. The orthogonal experiment was used to investigate the main and secondary effects of each reaction condition on the extraction rate of silica. The results showed that the mole ratio of NaOH-to-ore was the most important factor affecting the extraction rate of silica, followed by reaction temperature and reaction time. XRD, SEM, and EDS were used to analyze the nickel laterite ore and the residue after reaction. The results show that the mechanism of extracting silica by this process is the Si in lizardite (Mg3Si2O5(OH)4) and uncombined quartz (SiO2) react with sodium hydroxide and enter into the leachate in the form of sodium silicate solution, and Mg, Fe, Ni, and other metal elements are enriched in the residue.

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Funding

This work was financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51674068, 51704064, 51874079, 51804035), Natural Science Foundation of Liaoning Province (No. 2019-ZD-0507), Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province (No. E2018501091), Training Foundation for Scientific Research of Talents Project, Hebei Province (No. A2016005004), Hebei Province Higher Education Science and Technology Research Project (No. QN2017403), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. N172302001, N182312007, N182304015), Qinhuangdao City University Student of Science and Technology Innovation, Entrepreneurship Project (No. PZB1810008T-46, PZB1810008T-14), and Department of Education Project of Liaoning Province (No. QN2020012).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Bohai University, Jinzhou, 121013, China

    Shiyuan Cao, Longjiao Chang, Xiaolong Bi & Jianan Liu

  2. Liaoning Key Laboratory of Engineering Technology Research Center of Silicon Materials, Jinzhou, 121013, China

    Shiyuan Cao, Longjiao Chang, Xiaolong Bi & Jianan Liu

  3. School of Resources and Materials, Northeastern University at Qinhuangdao, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China

    Shaohua Luo

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  1. Shiyuan Cao
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Cao, S., Chang, L., Bi, X. et al. The Extraction of Silica from Nickel Laterite Ore by Alkaline Hydrothermal Process. Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration 39, 1245–1253 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-022-00597-x

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