Investigations on the separation of metal-bearing values from secondary sources in the production of value-added products

关于在增值产品生产中从二次来源中分离含金属价值的调查

• 批准号: RGPIN-2021-03999
• 负责人: Kelebek, Sadan
• 金额: $ 2.04万
• 依托单位: Queen's University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=742810
• 关键词: Investigations; separation; metal; bearing; values

The Canadian mining industry contributed $97 billion to the nation's Gross Domestic Product in 2018 (Mining.ca-2019). Mineral exports valued at $105 billion in 2018 accounted for 19% of Canada's domestic exports. Canada ranks among the top five countries in the global production of 15 minerals and metals. It is third in graphite, indium and platinum group metals. One application area for graphite (C) as it relates to the current proposal is in the production of anode material in the electric-car batteries, which also use a significant amount of nickel-cobalt for cathode composition (at much higher grades than the Ni grades in ores). According to recent production statistics, however, Ni-Co production declined in Canada. In 2018, Canada lost the top-five ranking position for Ni-Co. The elements C, Ni and Co focused on as part of the current proposal are in the list of strategic materials critical to the economy of Canada. In 2019, the Canadian government announced a plan to develop a strategy to rebuild the domestic supply of such critical elements. In parallel with the increased use of mineral and metal products for various applications, the need for their recovery from secondary sources has increasingly become important. Recycling is a crucial part of sustainability in mining/metallurgical industries, where environmental quality is very important. Traditionally, tailing areas of numerous mining sites constitute the main secondary sources of recoverable minerals due to process losses. There is a tremendous potential for recoverable Ni-Co bearing minerals in tailing areas, amounting to an economic value exceeding $10 billion, which can help restore Canada's rank among the top five countries. The long-term objective of the proposed research program is to significantly contribute to the security of future domestic supply of Ni-Co through the development of novel processes for their recovery from secondary sources, namely, storage areas of tails and spent lithium-ion batteries. The short-term objective is to develop separation methods involving the use of the equipment and new reagent systems in these two areas. Two of the four subprojects planned will focus on a novel use of hydrocyclone mechanism for the separation of graphite from Ni-Co bearing particles in spent batteries and from scavenger tails. The other subprojects will focus on fundamental surface chemical investigations and their applications involving novel flocculation, magnetic and selective flotation separation techniques described in this proposal. The results and conclusions obtained will be a basis for pilot and plant investigations as well as the development of new flowsheets originating from this research. The proposed program will provide training for a total of 9 highly qualified personnel, with 2 Ph.D. students, 2 MASc, and 5 undergraduate students for experimental strategies, data analysis and modelling skills to make needed contributions to the Canadian mining industry.

2018年，加拿大采矿业为该国国内生产总值贡献了970亿美元（mining .ca-2019）。2018年，价值1050亿美元的矿产出口占加拿大国内出口的19%。在15种矿物和金属的全球产量中，加拿大位列前五位。它在石墨、铟和铂族金属中排名第三。石墨(C)的一个应用领域与目前的提案有关，是生产电动汽车电池的负极材料，这也使用了大量的镍钴作为阴极成分（比矿石中的镍等级高得多）。然而，根据最近的生产统计数据，加拿大的镍钴产量有所下降。2018年，加拿大失去了镍钴前五名的位置。作为当前提案的一部分，C、Ni和Co元素都在对加拿大经济至关重要的战略材料清单中。2019年，加拿大政府宣布了一项计划，旨在制定一项战略，重建这些关键元素的国内供应。在矿物和金属产品越来越多地用于各种用途的同时，从次级来源回收这些产品的需要也日益变得重要。在环境质量非常重要的采矿/冶金工业中，回收是可持续性的关键部分。传统上，由于工艺损失，许多矿区的尾矿区构成可回收矿物的主要二次来源。在尾矿区有巨大的可采含镍钴矿物潜力，其经济价值超过100亿加元，可帮助加拿大恢复前五名的地位。拟议研究计划的长期目标是通过开发从二次来源（即尾部和废锂离子电池的存储区域）回收镍钴的新工艺，为未来国内镍钴供应的安全做出重大贡献。短期目标是在这两个领域开发涉及使用设备和新试剂系统的分离方法。计划中的四个子项目中有两个将侧重于水力旋流器机制的新用途，用于从废电池中的含镍钴颗粒和清除器尾部分离石墨。其他子项目将侧重于基本的表面化学研究及其应用，涉及本提案中描述的新型絮凝、磁性和选择性浮选分离技术。所获得的结果和结论将作为试验和工厂调查的基础，以及根据这项研究开发新的流程。该计划将为总共9名高素质人才提供培训，其中包括2名博士生、2名硕士生和5名本科生，他们将学习实验策略、数据分析和建模技能，为加拿大采矿业做出必要的贡献。