RECOVERY OF NICKEL FROM COPPER REFINERY TANKHOUSE ELECTROLYTE

摘要

A method is provided for recovering nickel from a copper refinery tankhouse electrolyte as a nickel containing or nickel-copper containing cake. According to this method, a portion of the electrolyte is decopperized to a desired level of copper concentration and the so decopperized solution is subjected to an acid retardation operation, so as to separate it into a strong acid stream and a weak acid stream. The strong acid stream is then recycled to the refinery tankhouse, while the weak acid stream containing a major proportion of the nickel and of copper, if any, remaining after decopperization, is neutralized to form a precipitate which is then filtered and washed to form the final product.