NEW CONCEPTION OF THE REUTILIZATION OF SOLID WASTE FROM CUBAN NICKELIFEROUS HYDROMETALLURGICAL INDUSTRY

Abstract

The acid and ammoniacal-carbonate hydrometallurgical industrial processes of the Cuban nickeliferous mines produce yearly, thousands tons of solid wastes, which are dumped in big waste dams that pollute the environment and, besides, they occupy big extensions of possible cultivated land areas. These hydrometallurgical tailings present appreciable contents of various minerals, which contain iron, aluminum, chrome, nickel, silicon, among other heavy metal elements. These nickel-ferriferous wastes constitute an attractive raw material source, which can be useful to obtain products of substantial demands and high use value. The aluminothermic process, using wastes (shavings and sawdust) of the aluminum carpentry and this metal's scrap, offers an attractive metallurgical method for the elaboration of the nickeliferous solid waste. Aluminopyrometallurgical process offers commendable economic and energetic saving advantages and, besides, does not produce residual solids; therefore, this method belongs to the cleaner-production range. By means of the aluminothermic process of these nickeliferous tailings, a similar metal to a white iron and a slag of alumina and various spiels type with high grade of abrasion are simultaneously obtained.