Elemental Analysis by EDXRF for Nickel Ore Processing
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Applied Rigaku Technologies, Inc. has published a new application report demonstrating an energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) method for the determination of atomic elements and oxides in the processing steps associated with nickel refining.
Analysis of nickel concentrate, filter cake, furnace matte and furnace slag is demonstrated in Application Note #1103.
In the processing of nickel, lateritic ores or sulfidic ores are typically first crushed and milled to a fine powder.
Water is added to create a pumpable slurry, which is treated with reagents during the flotation process in order to concentrate the nickel.
Slag from the subsequent smelting process is further processed to recover base and platinum group metals. Analytes included: MgO, Al2O3, SiO2, S, CaO, Cr2O3, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, and As.
Rigaku’s advanced benchtop NEX CG combines indirect excitation, with secondary and polarization targets and a high-performance silicon drift detector (SDD), to yield the optimum performance for elemental analysis of ores.
The method presented enables the reliable monitoring of elemental and oxide composition of the ore material throughout the entire processing cycle, including during smelting, as required for optimal process control and profitability.
The Rigaku NEX CG EDXRF spectrometer is shown to be an ideal tool for use throughout the quality control process.
Furthermore, the NEX CG can be used to monitor air filters for air quality emission control while the patented Rigaku Ultra Carry sample preparation technique is well-suited for monitoring process effluents to ppb range detection limits, making the NEX CG a versatile and valuable tool for several applications within ore mining and processing.
