Nickel

OccurrenceNickel is the 23rd most abundant element found in the Earth’s crust. It is somewhat plentiful but scattered and makes up one-hundredth of 1% of igneous rocks. Nickel metal is foundin meteorites (as are some other elements). It is believed that molten nickel, along with iron,makes up the central sphere that forms the core of the Earth.There are several types of nickel ores. One is the major ore for nickel called pentlandite(NiS 2FeS), which is iron/nickel sulfide. Another is a mineral called niccolite (NiAs), discovered in 1751 and first found in a mining area of Sweden. By far, the largest mining area fornickel is located in Ontario, Canada, where it is recovered from what is thought to be a verylarge meteorite that crashed into the Earth eons ago. This large nickel deposit is one reasonfor the theory of the Earth’s core being molten nickel and iron, given that both the Earth andmeteorites were formed during the early stages of the solar system. Some nickel ores are alsofound in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Scandinavia. Traces of nickel exist in soils, coal,plants, and animals.

VerwendenNickel-plating; for various alloys such as new silver, Chinese silver, German silver; for coins, electrotypes, storage batteries; magnets, lightning-rod tips, electrical contacts and electrodes, spark plugs, machinery parts; catalyst for hydrogenation of oils and other organic substances. See also Raney nickel. manufacture of Monel metal, stainless steels, heat resistant steels, heat and corrosion resistant alloys, nickel-chrome resistance wire; in alloys for electronic and space applications.

synthetischeThe carbonyl process is most commonly employed when very pure nickel is required. The impure metal is reacted with pure carbon monoxide at 50° and the carbonyl produced fractionated several times prior to pyrolysis at around 200°. The nickel thus obtained has a purity of 99.90-99.99% depending upon the materials used. Electrolytic methods for producing high purity nickel depend upon the production of high purity nickel salts. The nickel obtained by the electrolysis of pure nickel chloride solution with inert platinum-iridium anodes is 99.99% pure.