Vanchem
Vanchem is a primary vanadium-processing facility with a beneficiation plant located at the Ferrobank Industrial Park in Emalahleni Local Municipality at Mpumalanga Province, in South Africa. It produces vanadium pentoxide, ferrovanadium and vanadium chemicals and is capable of producing vanadium trioxide. Vanchem has been using ore acquired with the operation in 2019, supplemented with limited concentrate from Vametco. The Upper Seam Project, commissioned in Q4 2021, together with selective third party sources of ore will now be supplying Vanchem with a significant proportion of ore requirement for the foreseeable future.
Vanchem processing:
(step 1-3 similar to Vametco, except Vanchem does not do crushing)
- Step 1: Milling and magnetic separation to produce a magnetite concentrate with average grades of approximately 1.65 % V2O5 in-magnetite;
- Step 2: Salt-roasting of concentrate. The concentrate is roasted with sodium salts in a kiln at approximately 1,150°C to form a water-soluble sodium vanadate material;
- Step 3: Leaching and purification, involving dissolution of roasted vanadium concentrate in water, purification and precipitation of vanadium through the addition of ammonium sulphate, followed by drying and then processing in a reducing environment to produce an AMV product;
- Step 4: The AMV is de-ammoniated and melted to produce vanadium pentoxide flakes – a primary product. The AMV is also used in other processes to produce a spectrum of vanadium chemicals; and
- Step 5: Vanadium pentoxide is reduced by aluminium in the aluminothermic process in the presence of iron to produce ferrovanadium – a primary product.
Vanchem processing:
- Step 1: Crushing, milling and magnetic separation to produce a magnetite concentrate with average grades of approximately 1.65% V2O5 in-magnetite;
- Step 2: Salt-roasting of concentrate. The concentrate is roasted with sodium salts in a kiln at ~1,150°C to form a water-soluble sodium vanadate material;
- Step 3: Leaching and purification, involving dissolution of roasted vanadium concentrate in water, purification and precipitation of vanadium through the addition of ammonium sulphate, followed by drying and then processing in a reducing environment to produce an ammonium metavanadate (“AMV”) product;
- Step 4: The AMV is de-ammoniated and melted to produce vanadium pentoxide flakes – a primary product. The AMV is also used in other processes to produce a spectrum of vanadium chemicals; and
- Step 5: vanadium pentoxide is reduced by aluminium in the aluminothermic process in the presence of iron to produce ferrovanadium – a primary product.
