It is expected that the pilot plant will produce around one ton of high purity alumina. The potential customers in Asia and Europe are already waiting for the material thus obtained.
FYI Resources is about to test run the HPA pilot plant
FYI Resources (FYI, FRA: SDL) plans to launch the critical one-week test run of its HPA pilot production in Western Australia in October. With only a few tons of source material from the exploration wells available for testing, this trial production is meticulously prepared. Every effort is made to ensure that the tests are as meaningful as possible for later large-scale operations.
Therefore, FYI has made ten representative blends (composites) from the available core material, each coming from different parts of the kaolin reserve. The slightly varying material in its composition is intended to simulate the actual progress of the subsequent degradation. Experts speak of so-called variability tests, which are intended to ensure that the proposed cleaning method works with the widest possible range of different mixtures.
All ten mass spectrometry-tested HPA samples outperform 4N
Now, independent analysis of the ten HPA samples thus obtained by mass spectrometry has shown that all ten samples meet and sometimes far exceed the desired 4N (99,99%) specification. All samples were beyond 99,995 percent purity. The best samples even achieved 99,997 or 99,998 percent purity. Managing Director Roland Hill rated the results as excellent for the upcoming test run. The pilot plant is currently being prepared for the upcoming test. It is about checking the flowchart of the pre-feasibility and simulating the processes of the later large-scale production as realistically as possible. By the end of November FYI wants to have completed the complete feasibility study.
It is expected that the pilot plant will produce around one ton of high purity alumina. The potential customers in Asia and Europe are already waiting for the material thus obtained. If the feedback from potential customers is positive, FYI Resources wants to negotiate off-take contracts in the next step. FYI's offer to major manufacturers is the secure, long-term supply of high quality HPA at highly competitive prices.
High purity alumina (HPA) is needed to make powerful LEDs. Increasingly, however, HPA is also used in improving the safety of lithium-ion batteries.
Demand for HPA grows at 17 percent annually
The internationally respected consulting firm CRU has recently released numbers that are expected to see a huge surge in demand for high-purity alumina in the current decade through to 2028. CRU estimates that demand will increase by 17 per year. If supply were not so tight, demand could theoretically grow by as much as 30 percent per year, according to CRU. CRU experts believe that the conventional production of HPA from the hydrolysis of aluminum metal will not meet the demand.
From the point of view of CRU, high-purity products with a purity of 99,99% (4N) are the most in demand. Firstly, CRU recognizes the reason for the demand in the growing LED market, where HPA is used in the form of so-called sapphire wafers. These wafers tend to grow larger, further fueling demand for HPA in addition to LED growth, which is already there. The other growth area, according to CRU, is the coating of battery separators in lithium-ion batteries. This particularly concerns safety in stationary applications, but also in electric vehicles.
The cost-effective production of HPA based on kaolin as promoted by FYI Resources or Altech Chemicals (ASX: ATC) is an alternative, according to CRU. How real the demand pressure is today can be seen from the rising prices of HPA. CRU estimates that the average price per ton last year was 32.000 USD. FYI Resources had pre-budgeted with prices of 24.000 USD.
Text: Pressebox, Goldinvest - September 2019
