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Processing of ocean nodules: A technical and economic review

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Abstract

A detailed comparison of ammoniacal, sulfuric acid and hydrochloric acid processes is presented by Kennecott researchers, who favor hydrometallurgical techniques over pyrometallurgical treatments

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Authors
  1. J. C. Agarwal
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  2. N. Beecher
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  3. D. S. Davies
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  4. G. L. Hubred
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  5. V. K. Kakaria
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  6. R. N. Kust
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Additional information

J. C. AGARWAL is director-development at Ledgemont Laboratory—Kennecott Copper Corp., Lexington, Mass. Before joining Kennecott in 1969, he was with the U.S. Steel Corp. as Chief of the Process Analysis Division, Applied Research Laboratory, Monroeville, Pa. He holds a D.Ch.E. degree from Polytechnic Institute of New York. He has authored over 80 articles on minerals and metals technology, and holds some 16 patents.

DAVID S. DAVIES is a program manager—hydrometallurgy at Kennecott—s Ledgemont Laboratory. He holds a B.S. in chemical engineering from The Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn and a M.S. in chemical engineering from the University of Connecticut. He has been active in metallurgical pilot plant operations and is a solids-liquids separation specialist.

NORMAN BEECHER has been program manager at Kennecott Copper—s Ledgemont Laboratory since 1969, in charge of nodules processing development. He received B.S., M.S., and D.Sc. degrees from M.I.T. In 1957 he joined National Research Corp., Cambridge, Mass., where he later became assistant director of research. His work ranged from re-entry heat transfer to design and construction of the first helium cooled titanium scrap furnace and included extractive metallurgy of titanium, zirconium and tantalum.

GALE L. HUBRED received a Ph.D. (extractive metallurgy) from the University of California, Berkeley in 1973; a M.S. (oceanography) from the University of Hawaii in 1970; and a B.S. (chemical engineering) from the University of Minnesota in 1962. He has six years experience as a process engineer and production supervisor with Dow Chemical Co. He is presently employed as a senior chemical engineer at the Ledgemont Laboratory of Kennecott Copper. He is an author of several papers about manganese nodules.

V. K. KAKARIA is group leader—process engineering, at Kennecott Copper—s Ledgemont Laboratory in Lexington, Mass. Before joining Kennecott in 1973, he was with Stearns-Roger Corp. in Denver, Colo., as assistant chief process engineer in the Metallurgical Div. He graduated in chemical engineering from Colorado School of Mines and has since been involved with engineering, design, construction and economic evaluations of major metallurgical plants for nickel, copper, uranium, beryllium, molybdenum and other nonferrous metals and inorganic chemicals.

ROGER N. KUST has been a senior chemist at Kennecott—s Ledgemont Laboratory since 1971. He received his Ph.D. from Iowa State University in 1963. After doing post-doctoral research at Texas A & M University, he joined the faculty at University of Utah in 1965. His work at Ledgemont involves development of hydrometallurgical processes.

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Agarwal, J.C., Beecher, N., Davies, D.S. et al. Processing of ocean nodules: A technical and economic review. JOM 28, 24–31 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03354283

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