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Effect of Inner Reductant Addition and Laying on Carbothermic Reduction Process of Laterite Nickel Ore/Coal Composite Briquette

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Abstract

Strict environmental regulations have made on many industrial sectors to try and reduce CO2 gas production, including the nickel and ferronickel manufacturing industries. One of the promising technologies in reducing CO2 emissions is carbothermic reduction using a lower operating temperature than smelting process. This study aims to study the effects of adding and laying reductant (coal) on composite briquette. By using the same C/O molar ratio, this research tries to study the effects of inner and outer coal on the carbothermic reduction of laterite nickel ore. The carbothermal reduction process was carried out at 700 °C for 2 h and then followed by heating at 1400 °C for 6 h. Then, the ferronickel was separated from the impurities by magnetic separation. Several tests and calculations were carried out to assess process performance, such as energy dispersive X-ray, scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffractometer, calculation of nickel recovery, calculation of selectivity factor, and calculation of separation efficiency. The result showed that inner and outer coal in the carbothermic reduction process of laterite nickel ore can affect the selectivity performance of nickel. The best nickel recovery (93%) was obtained when using 70% inner coal and 30% outer coal. On the other hand, the best nickel content (13.99%) was achieved when using 90% inner coal and 10% outer coal. The ferronickel product obtained from this process can be applied as a raw material in stainless steel making or further processed into nickel sulfate powder.

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Acknowledgements

The authors express their highest appreciation to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, which has supported the funding of this research through the Penelitian Terapan Scheme with a research contract number: 3/E1/KP.PTNBH/2021 and 992/PKS/ITS/2021.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, Faculty of Industrial Technology and System Engineering, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember, Arief Rahman Hakim Street, Surabaya, 60111, Indonesia

    Fakhreza Abdul, Prita Meilyvia Devalini, Yuli Setiyorini & Sungging Pintowantoro

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Institut Teknologi Adhi Tama Surabaya, Surabaya, Indonesia

    Vuri Ayu Setyowati

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  1. Fakhreza Abdul
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Correspondence to Sungging Pintowantoro.

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Abdul, F., Devalini, P.M., Setiyorini, Y. et al. Effect of Inner Reductant Addition and Laying on Carbothermic Reduction Process of Laterite Nickel Ore/Coal Composite Briquette. Arab J Sci Eng 48, 11285–11294 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-022-07402-3

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