10 September 2024
by Alex Brinded

The Metals Company processes deep-sea polymetallic nodules

The firm has produced calcine as it begins to process 2,000t of deep-sea polymetallic nodules in Japan.

One of PAMCO's experienced operating personnel monitors the production of calcine inside the Rotary Kiln Electric-Arc Furnace © TMC the metals company Inc.

The Metals Company (TMC) processed the nodules at its partner PAMCO's Hachinohe Rotary Kiln Electric-Arc Furnace facility in Hachinohe.

Engineers have fed around 1,200t of nodules into the 131m-long commercial kiln via conveyor belt at a rate of 60t an hour. This has created roughly 500t of calcine, which will cool slowly before being transferred to a demonstration smelting facility.

TMC says that, as sufficient quantities of calcine have now been produced, PAMCO will start smelting the calcine into a high-grade, nickel-copper-cobalt alloy and manganese silicate in the coming months.

TMC’s Head of Onshore Development, Dr Jeffrey Donald, comments, 'After years of carefully-planned development, bench-scale tests, engineering studies and pilot demonstrations, it’s very exciting to see the world’s first commercial-scale processing of our nodules.'

More like this...

 

Related topics

Authors

Alex Brinded

Staff Writer