NioCorp Developments Ltd. (TSX:NB, OTCQX:NIOBF) said its demonstration-scale processing plant in Quebec, Canada has succeeded in obtaining a rare earth dissolution rate of 86-95% from Elk Creek ore through hydrochloric acid leaching.
It has also achieved a loading rate of rare earths as high as 99% in the follow-on solvent extraction recovery step.
"These results are in line with our expectations and they show that the ongoing work at the plant is proceeding in a positive direction," said Scott Honan, NioCorp's chief operating officer in a statement.
"In the coming weeks, we look forward to seeing the final results from the separations extractions testing that is now underway and to reporting those results to the public," he added.
READ: NioCorp Developments says it has reached key first phase milestone at demonstration-scale processing plant
These high rates point to potentially strong rates of overall recovery of separated rare earth oxides, subject to additional demonstration testing over the coming weeks, the company said, noting that additional solvent extraction steps will be deployed to establish the ultimate recovery rates of potential rare earth products.
The demonstration plant has further established that the rare earths recovered in the initial solvent extraction step are accompanied by only two impurities of note: iron and a very small amount of nickel.
Given the success of this initial separation step, L3 and NioCorp expect that losses in the additional solvent extraction steps would be low.
Recovery of three high-purity rare earth products
NioCorp is currently focused on demonstrating its ability to recover three high-purity rare earth products:
- neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) oxide, which is the principal component of neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) permanent rare earth magnets;
- Dysprosium (Dy) oxide; and
- Terbium (Tb) oxide.
Both Dy and Tb oxide are critical to the type of powerful NdFeB magnets used in the traction motors of electric vehicles. However, very little of these high-purity separated rare earth products are made outside of Asia.
As no economic analysis has been completed on the rare earth mineral resource comprising a portion of the Elk Creek Project, the company said that further studies are required before determining whether extraction of rare earth elements can be reasonably justified and economically viable after taking into account all relevant factors.
NioCorp
NioCorp is developing a critical minerals project in Southeast Nebraska that will produce niobium, scandium, and titanium. The company is also evaluating the potential to produce several rare earths from the project.
Niobium is used to produce specialty alloys as well as High Strength, Low Alloy (HSLA) steel, which is a lighter, stronger steel used in automotive, structural, and pipeline applications.
Scandium is a specialty metal that can be combined with aluminum to make alloys with increased strength and improved corrosion resistance. Scandium is also a critical component of advanced solid oxide fuel cells.
Titanium is used in various lightweight alloys and is a key component of pigments used in paper, paint and plastics and is also used for aerospace applications, armor, and medical implants.
Magnetic rare earths, such as neodymium, praseodymium, terbium, and dysprosium are critical to the making of NdFeB magnets, which are used across a wide variety of defense and civilian applications.
Contact the author at jon.hopkins@proactiveinvestors.com