INTERNATIONAL CLEANER PRODUCTION INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE

CASE STUDY #26
1.   Headline: Nickel recovery from used catalysts
2.   Background: Raney nickel (nickel aluminum alloy) is one of
the most popular reduction catalysts in the chemical industry.
Disposal of the used catalyst is problematic, and it is
categorized as industrial waste.
     Nikko Fine Products Co Ltd was founded in 1966. It
     manufactures metals, metal oxides, inorganic chemicals,
     food additives, fats, and natural wax, and is also
     involved in the recovery and regeneration of catalysts.
3.   Cleaner Production Principle: Process modification and
internal recycling
4.   Description of Cleaner Production Application: In the dry
     method of production, nickel is recovered from the used
     catalyst has been deactivated. Deactivation involves
     adding to the used catalyst a 15 per cent sodium nitrate
     aqueous solution. The mixture is agitated, heated at 40-
     50 C, left for more than an hour, and then rinsed with
     water.
     Following this, the used catalyst mixture is burned three
     times:
     - First, the mixture is burned at 800 C for 12 hours in a
gas shattle kiln, to remove the water and organic matter in the
used catalyst.
     - The catalyst is then roughly ground and burned again,
     at 1 000 C.
     - Finally, the catalyst is burned at 1 200 - 1 300 C.
     After this, the used catalyst is finely pulverized, and
recovered as nickel oxide. It is important that the temperature
is monitored during each stage when the catalyst is burned. The
temperature is controlled in the furnace by 10 different
monitors.
     The disposal of the used catalyst is deactivated with
sodium nitrate. Nickel from the used catalyst is recovered and
recycled.
5.   Economics:
                              Yens per kg of pure nickel
                                  Before       After
              Cost                 700         600
              Value                 650        1350
              Benefit              - 50         750
     Before the process was introduced, the recovered nickel
     was used in the production of stainless steel. Now, it is
     reactivated as nickel oxide. Two hundred tons of pure
     nickel were disposed of in 1994.
6.   Advantages: The process is safe during operation, as the
     used catalyst is deactivated. It produces less waste, as
     it is disposed of in the dry method. Gas emissions are
     deodorized and made harmless by full burning with a
     secondary combustion facility. Complete oxidation occurs
     during a repeated direct oxidation process and
     pulverization, so the nickel oxide can be used for
     pigments used in the ceramic industry, colored glass
     bottles, and material for ferrite. Compared to the
     production of general nickel oxide, the process is both
     simple and low-cost.
7.   Constraints: N/A
8.   Contacts:Masumi Kojima
                  Nikko Fine Products Co Ltd
                  1-26 Kanda Suda-oho
                  Chiyada-ku
                  Tokyo 101
                  Japan
                  Tel: + 81 3 3256 3611
                  Fax: + 81 3 3256 3616
9.   Keywords:  Japan, chemical, nickel, process modification,
     recycling, catalyst recovery, heat treatment
10.  Reviewer comments: This case study was originally
     published in the UNEP IE document "Cleaner Production
     Worldwide", Volume II. In the process of preparing the
     document the case study underwent a technical review.