Growing Crystals, Growing Capabilities

Check out these stunning nickel sulfate hexahydrate crystals—grown during the final stages of research on solvent extraction and crystallization of base metals.

This bulk test wasn’t just a chemistry experiment—it was proof of concept. We:

• Extracted copper, cobalt, and nickel using solvent extraction with tailored organics (LIX984N, Cyanex 272, and Versatic Acid 10),

• Removed deleterious elements through neutralization and pre-clean steps,

• And concentrated clean strip solutions to grow cobalt and nickel sulfate crystals approaching battery-grade purity.

🔍 The nickel crystallization step included:

• Carefully controlled pH ~7.5 for extraction,

• Stripping with 10 g/L H₂SO₄,

• And evaporation & cooling to yield these beautiful, chunky green-blue crystals.

While these crystals aren’t quite battery grade yet, this project proved that domestic recovery of critical metals like nickel and cobalt is not only possible—it’s scalable.

⚙️ Bonus: This work formed the foundation for a 13-vessel solvent extraction pilot plant design.

📘 From bench tests to pilot scale —this is how we make metallurgy matter.