[nickel, cobalt and lithium summit] there are still risks in the cobalt smelting industry. At first, these technologies are necessary!

SMM7: at the 2020 (Fifth) China International Nickel-Cobalt-Lithium Summit Forum and China International Conference on New Energy Lithium Materials held by SMM, Wang Sanyou, chief engineer of Hefei Rongjie Metal Technology Co., Ltd. gave an on-site explanation on the development trend and new progress of cobalt smelting technology.

Analysis on the present situation of Cobalt smelting Industry

Wang Sanyou said that judging from the current situation of the cobalt smelting industry, apart from the impact of sudden global epidemics this year, the cobalt smelting industry chain faces frequent sudden changes in the fluctuation of policies and standards; the roller coaster fluctuation of the upper and lower ends; the imbalance of the ratio of production and demand-supply exceeds demand; the change of the demand structure of end products; the growth of production costs and the ski decline of profits; the progress of technology and production equipment lags behind; Individual failure to abide by the rules is purely the interference of speculators; financing difficulties and poor return of funds and other problems. On the whole, there are still opportunities and risks in the cobalt smelting industry.

Thinking and superficial opinion

1. Prepare attentively: collect information from all parties, think, analyze, demonstrate, and make decisions.

Collect the information of "eight values":

Upper view (government policy) and lower view (market demand);

An overview (the trend of the industry) and a horizontal view (the trend of the industry up and down);

Point view (key local situation trend) and face view (global situation trend);

Near-term view (recent situation) and distant view (future development trend).

Through the analysis and textual research of "four views": subjective and objective, reverse thinking and transposition thinking.

Determine the "one view" to draw a conclusion: one's own cognition, judgment and decision-making point of view.

2. Precise control

From the core breakthrough, we should pay more attention to the issue of "three technologies", bearing in mind that there must be competition between "talents and technology" in development, thus arousing the cutting-edge combat strength of "science and technology is the primary productive force."

That is, attach importance to the introduction, training, reuse and kind treatment of technical personnel (attracting, employing and retaining personnel)

Attach importance to the research, development, introduction and application of new production technology and new production equipment

Attach importance to the development, introduction and industrialization transformation of high-tech products

Development trend of Cobalt smelting Technology

New Progress of Cobalt smelting Technology

1. New Progress in leaching Technology

It mainly includes: continuous countercurrent leaching process; stage countercurrent and parallel current leaching process; selective multi-stage step-by-step leaching process; combined atmospheric pressure and pressure assisted fractionation leaching process.

The common advantages of these processes are: to improve production efficiency, reduce production costs, maintain continuous stability, and improve production profits.

1). It can greatly reduce the reactive power consumption time of materials, equipment and personnel, and improve the efficiency and output of production.

2). It can greatly reduce the consumption of reactive steam and electric energy, and the excessive consumption proportion and consumption of leaching auxiliary materials.

3). It can effectively control the production instability caused by the non-uniformity of raw materials and ensure the continuous and stable production quality.

The basic criteria for the selection of leaching process and leaching mode: high efficiency, low cost, safety and environmental protection, energy saving and emission reduction, convenient for clean production.

The formulation of several basic technological conditions to be controlled in the leaching process:

"five degrees" refers to the basic situation of solid and liquid single phase and their mixed phase in the system: concentration (material), temperature (reaction), speed (feeding), strength (stirring), pH (system);

"one degree" means that the above-mentioned "five degrees" should be scientifically set and finely controlled within the range of "moderate" values that can blend and help each other.

Main points: properly grasp the "one degree", properly adjust and control the "five degrees" to help each other.

2. New Progress in extraction Technology

It mainly includes: shunt and cross-flow extraction technology; cooperative and assisted extraction technology; multi-stage selective continuous extraction process; multi-stage shunt extraction and step cross-flow reverse extraction total reverse extraction process; intelligent equipment and intelligent automatic control extraction technology

The common advantages of these processes are: to improve production efficiency, reduce production costs, maintain continuous stability, and improve production profits.

The main results are as follows: 1) the production operation efficiency and output can be greatly improved.

2) the continuous stability of production operation can be greatly improved. Especially the intelligent extraction technology.

3) it can reduce the consumption proportion and consumption of extraction auxiliary materials, and reduce the generation and discharge of waste water.

Basic criteria for the selection of extraction process and extraction methods: high efficiency and stability, safety and environmental protection, high quality and high production capacity, low consumption and low cost, intelligence or automation

To formulate several basic process conditions to be controlled in the extraction technology:

"Seven degree" refers to the basic situation of oil and water single phase and their mixed phase in the system: acidity, concentration, temperature, speed, strength, density, viscosity.

"one degree" means that the above-mentioned "seven degrees" should be scientifically set and finely controlled around the "equilibrium stability" necessary for the whole extraction system.

Main points: strictly grasp the "one degree", fine adjust and control the harmonious coexistence of "seven degrees".

3. Development of Intelligent equipment and Intelligent Control Technology

Since the end of the last century, with the vigorous rise of the application field of lithium battery, the cobalt smelting industry and its related equipment industry has also become a hot spot of investment for people with lofty ideals. Especially in the past decade, with the continuous increase of cobalt smelting technology and output, the closely related production equipment, environmental protection equipment, on-line detection equipment and on-line control technology are also needed.

Development of production equipment for Cobalt smelting

There are many kinds of cobalt smelting production equipment, and in recent years, with the improvement of design and manufacturing technology, it has also made varying degrees of progress. Among them, the most prominent progress is extraction equipment, which is also the most key "core equipment" in the process of hydrometallurgy. The progress of extraction equipment is mainly reflected in: more efficient, more environmentally friendly, and gradually realize intelligence. The main manifestations are as follows:

The main contents are as follows: (1) further optimize and improve the old trough extraction system to meet the high requirements of the new environmental protection standards. For example, structural improvements such as sealing and running under slight negative pressure to reduce the unorganized emission of VOC gas and acid fog, and to be able to organize recycling treatment.

(2) R & D, design, manufacture and application of new extraction equipment. In recent years, some new extraction devices or equipment have been introduced, such as pipeline extraction device, full interface extraction device and centrifugal extraction equipment. Compared with the traditional trough extraction device, the former two have changed the mixing mode or method of the two phases, and the two-phase separation still needs to be completed in the clarifier.

Development of Intelligent Control Technology

On November 8, 2019, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in order to implement the 2018 Central Economic work Conference on "increasing the technological transformation and equipment upgrading of the manufacturing industry, and speeding up the pace of 5G commercial use," strengthen the work deployment of artificial intelligence, industrial Internet, Internet of things and other new infrastructure construction, and earnestly promote the intelligence upgrading of non-ferrous metal enterprises in accordance with the overall requirements of the National Intelligent Manufacturing Standard system Construction Guide. It has studied, compiled and issued the public consultation notice of "Guide to the Construction of Intelligent smelting plants in Nonferrous Metals Industry (draft for soliciting opinions)".

The extraction separation production unit is the key production equipment of the non-ferrous metal hydrometallurgical plant. There are many influencing factors and variables in the extraction separation process, so it is a production process with high stability and continuity. The construction of intelligent extraction and separation production equipment by using intelligent technology is of great significance to the wet intelligent smelting of non-ferrous metals industry. Through the use of new intelligent equipment and its intelligent control technology, we can quickly deal with and eliminate the influence of many unstable factors, and ensure the efficient, safe, continuous and stable operation of production.

The intelligence of cobalt smelting industry is still in the initial stage of layout and design, but it must be the inevitable trend to pursue the development of precision and agile control technology in the next few years. The innovation and progress of production technology, which is the cornerstone of it, will certainly ride the Chinese-made "Fuxing" high-speed train, and the high-speed "Mercedes-Benz" will be in the land of China!

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