EVERYDAY ITEMS YOU DIDN’T KNOW CONTAINED NICKEL
By: Evan Lucyk
Bit Service is dedicated to continually helping our clients stay on top of what’s going on in the bit world, as well as generally in the mining industry. With more than five decades of experience in the industry and housing an expert staff who know their stuff, we love passing along insights and information to increase your awareness so that you can stay in the know.
In this spirit, we wanted to take some time to talk about nickel. First off, did you know that the mining industry in Manitoba is the second-largest resource industry in the province’s entire economy, with a total value of production estimated around $2.5 billion in 2020 and employing an impressive 5,700 people in the province? It’s true. And the mining of nickel makes up a hefty percentage of that value, with Manitoba reportedly being responsible for producing 7.1% of Canada’s nickel in 2019. On a global scale, Canada ranked fifth in the world for mine production of nickel that same year (2019).
So, why is this so important to you? Well, nickel and its compounds are essential elements in the manufacturing of countless products that we all rely on in our daily lives. You’d be surprised to learn just how many of our everyday use items contain this particular element.
USES FOR NICKEL
For instance, think of the last time you made use of a bathroom tap or showerhead, batteries, paid for something with coins, drove a car, called someone on a mobile phone, or even used cookware to bake—and then cutlery to eat—meals with. Well, you can thank nickel mining for that. Nickel, rarely used in its pure form, once mined, is combined with other metals (most often iron, chromium, and copper) to create alloys that are far more durable and resilient than regular metals. You can see nickel used as an alloying element in things like cast irons, steels, non-ferrous alloys, and more—meaning that the above-mentioned items are just the beginning of all that nickel makes possible.
WHERE DOES NICKEL COME FROM?
The fifth most abundant element on Earth, the majority of nickel can only be found far below the Earth’s surface—known as the core (a whopping 1,800 miles below the surface, in fact). There are two major types of ore deposits: magmatic sulfide deposits (found in Norilsk, Russia; Sudbury, Ontario, Canada; and Kambalda, Australia) and laterite deposits (found mainly in Cuba, New Caledonia, and Indonesia). In Canada specifically, the largest nickel deposits are found in the Thompson Nickel Belt in Manitoba, Ontario’s Sudbury Basin, and the Ungava Peninsula in Quebec.
NICKEL MINING PROCESS
All Canadian nickel mines are sulphide-type deposits, the majority of which are mined underground versus open cast. Once the ore is mined, it is sent to the concentrator to be crushed and to cause the sulphide minerals to be concentrated by flotation. The concentrate produced is then smelted to make nickel matte, which is sent to a refinery where all of the great and useful products we mentioned can then made from the resulting pellets, powders, etc., produced.
You have now officially received your crash course in all things nickel. If you’d like to hear more about Canada’s mining process and also discover how Bit Service can further serve you, contact us today to get started.