Nickel is poised to play a major role in global green-energy efforts over the next couple of decades. With the effects of more than a century of global warming becoming more apparent by the day, several countries around the world have begun phasing out dirty energy sources such as coal and oil in favor of cleaner alternatives.
The goal is to drastically reduce carbon and greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere and arrest the rate of atmospheric heating. Aside from limiting the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the environment, carbon-capture technology will also be essential in global green-energy efforts.
According to the Nickel Institute, nickel will be critical to the development and deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCC) technologies across the entire value chain. This includes the actual capturing of atmospheric carbon, transporting the captured carbon and storing it in subsurface facilities.
However, most CCC processes keep free water at extremely low temperatures, creating acidic conditions that stimulate corrosion in metals such as carbon steel. CCC infrastructure will require raw materials such as nickel that are capable of withstanding high levels of acidity and remaining corrosion free.
Consequently, nickel alloys and stainless steels containing higher-grade nickels will be deployed in wet and acidic processes or processes that use drying to capture carbon dioxide from the environment. Processes that require high temperatures and generally harsh conditions will also require more resilient metals such as nickel to function effectively.
Nickel will most likely be involved in every step of the carbon-capture and storage-value chain. For instance, the transportation of captured carbon will primarily occur through underground pipelines, rail, trucks and shipping.
Because liquefying the carbon will make it easier to transport, most of the equipment used to transport the liquefied carbon will be nickel alloys or nickel-containing, low-alloy steel.
Once the carbon is captured, it will be transported underground to storage facilities. Although conditions at the storage facilities are usually noncorrosive and dry, the chances of corrosion are high because these facilities require have nearby wells to account for the risk of acidic conditions. U.S. guidelines state that these wells should be designed with materials that are resistant to corrosion, such as nickel alloys or nickel-containing stainless steel.
This means that nickel will also be critical in the development of subsurface storage facilities for captured carbon, underscoring the metal’s criticality throughout the entire value chain.
The Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP) is currently working on guidelines outlining situations where nickel would be most suitable.
With these vital roles that nickel is set to play in the climate change fight, companies like Canada Nickel Company Inc. (TSX.V: CNC) (OTCQX: CNIKF) are set to benefit from these diverse uses to which nickel will increasingly be put over the coming decades.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Canada Nickel Company Inc. (TSX.V: CNC) (OTCQX: CNIKF) are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/CNIKF
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