Process of recovering metal values from complex ores containing iron and nickel

Claim 1

THE PROCESS OF RECOVERING METAL VALUES FROM SOLID ORE MATERIAL CONTAINING IRON, NICKEL AND AT LEAST ONE OF THE ELEMENTS: MANGANESE AND MAGNESIUM, COMPRISING THE STEPS OF CHLORIDIZING THE SOLID MATERIAL AT A TEMPERATURE IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 400* TO 600* F. BY PASSING IN INTIMATE CONTACT THEREWITH A GASEOUS MIXTURE CONTAINING HYDROGEN CHLORIDE AND WATER VAPOR IN THE RATIO TO EACH OTHER FROM ABOUT 2:1 TO ABOUT 1:2, SO AS TO CHLORIDIZE TO MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF THE NICKEL PRESENT TO FORM NICL2, WHILE SUBSTANTIALLY SUPPRESSING CHLORIDIZATION OF IRON TO THE FORM OF FECL3; LEACHING THE SOLID MATERIAL, AFTER IT IS COOLED FOLLOWING THE CHLORIDIZING STEP AFORESAIDK WITH AN AQUEOUS LIQUID AND THEN DIVIDING THE MATERIAL INTO A WATER-INSOLUBLE PORTION INCLUDING GANGUE PRESENT IN THE ORIGINAL ORE, IRON OXIDE AND CHROMIUM PRESENT IN THE ORIGINAL ORE IN THE FORM OF OXIDE, AND A WATER-SOLUBLE PORTION INCLUDING CHLORIDES OF NICKEL, COBALT, MAGNESIUM AND MANGANESE WHICH WERE PRESENT IN THE ORIGINAL ORE AND WHICH WERE CHLORIDIZED IN THE CHLORIDIZING STEP; EVAPORATING SAID SOLUBLE PORTION TO LEAVE THE CHLORIDES AFORESAID IN SOLID FORM; SELECTIVELY REDUCING NICKEL AND COBALT PRESENT AS CHLORIDES WITHOUT AT THE SAME TIME CONVERTING SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNTS OF THE CHLORIDES OF MAGNESIUM AND MANGANESE WHICH MAY BE PRESENT TO ANY WATER-INSOLUBLE FORM, BY CONTACTING SAID REMAINING CHLORIDES IN A REDUCING ZONE AND AT A TEMPERATURE IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 620* F. TO ABOUT 1160* F. WITH A GASEOUS REDUCNG ATMOSPHERE CONTAINING HYDROGEN, HYDROGEN CHLORIDE AND WATER VAPOR WITHIN THE LIMITING CONDITIONS SET FORTH IN THE FOLLOWING TABLE: