On the reaction mechanism of nickel with SO₂+O₂/SO₃

Abstract

High-purity nickel has been reacted with 96% O₂+4% SO₂ at 700–900°C. The reaction has been studied at 700°C as a function of the total gas pressure (0.06–1 atm) and at 1 atm as a function of temperature (700–900°C). The reaction mechanism changes with the effective pressure of p(SO₃) in the gas. When NiSO₄ (NiO + SO₃ = NiSO₄) is formed on the scale surface, the scale consists of a two-phase mixture of NiO + Ni₃S₂; in addition, sulfur is enriched at the metal/scale interface. A main process in the reaction is rapid outward diffusion of nickel through the Ni₃S₂ phase in the scale; the nickel reacts with NiSO₄ to yield NiO, Ni₃S₂, and possibly NiS as an intermediate product. When NiSO₄ cannot be formed, the scale consists of NiO, and small amounts of sulfur accumulate at the metal/scale interface. It is proposed that the reaction under these conditions is primarily governed by outward grain boundary diffusion of nickel through the NiO scale, and in addition, small amounts of SO₂ migrate inward through the scale—probably along microchannels.