The solubility of goethite with structurally incorporated nickel and cobalt: Implication for laterites

DOI: 10.1016/j.chemgeo.2019.04.021

Authors: Ifeoma Mary Ugwu (University of Bristol; Enugu State University of Science and Technology) , David M. Sherman (University of Bristol)
Co-authored by industrial partner: No

Type: Journal Paper
Journal: Chemical Geology

State: Published (Approved)
Published: April 2019
Diamond Proposal Number(s): 15353

Abstract: Both cobalt (Co) and nickel (Ni) substitute for Fe in goethite (α-FeOOH) as well as adsorb on goethite. Co and Ni-rich goethite are the dominant ore mineral in oxide-type laterite deposits. A quantitative understanding of the aqueous solubility of Ni- and Co-rich goethite would help in modelling the formation of laterites and developing methods for metal extraction. In this contribution, we determined the aqueous solubility of substituted nickel and cobalt goethite in both the binary and ternary systems as a function of pH < 1 to 5 and varying concentrations found in Ni laterites. We found the dependency of the solubility product (Ksp) of goethite to the type of incorporated ion, concentrations, and pH. The solubility of Ni substituted goethite increases with increasing pH and increasing Ni substitution. A similar trend is observed for Co, although its substitution in goethite appears to increase the stability of goethite. Ksp increases with increasing Ni and Co substitution in bi-metal (Ni and Co) goethite, and are generally low compared to those of single metal substituted goethite with the same concentration. These findings have some implication for substitution mechanism and Ni and Co extraction from laterites and soils. The Ni(OH)2-Co(OH)2-FeOOH solid solution simulation with PHREEQC is inconsistent with our experimental data and reveals “nonideality” of mixing systems with different chemical and thermodynamic properties as end members, but attained equilibrium with goethite at lower pH.

Journal Keywords: Solubility; Nickel; Cobalt; Goethite; Ni laterite; PHREEQC

Subject Areas: Earth Science, Chemistry


Instruments: I18-Microfocus Spectroscopy

Added On: 25/04/2019 08:38

Discipline Tags:

Earth Sciences & Environment Mineralogy Chemistry Inorganic Chemistry Geology Geochemistry

Technical Tags:

Spectroscopy X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS)