One of the unique aspects of nickel is that it is foreign to planet Earth, it has been supplied and deposited by meteorites that have struck our planet. Canada and Russia are two of the largest nickel producers due to their large nickel deposits. Nickel is used in over 300,000 products for consumer, industrial, military, transport, aerospace, marine and architectural purposes.
Nickel Alloyed with Iron, Stainless Steel and Copper
The three primary metals that nickel is alloyed with to improve their characteristics are iron, stainless steel, and copper. When nickel is alloyed with iron, it is commonly used for bulletproof uses such as armor plating for vehicles and bank vaults/safes. Stainless steel that is alloyed with nickel creates Inconel and Monel which is primarily used in machine parts and aerospace materials. Finally, when copper is alloyed with nickel, it makes a product called cupro nickel, which is primarily used in desalination pipes.
High Demand Nickel
Due to the limited supply of nickel in the market, the prices for recycled nickel are considerably higher than other metals. Because nickel is rarely used by itself and alloying different percentages of nickel give specific properties and grades, it is often tried to be recycled as the same special alloy. This is because the production process to create nickel-based alloys to meet stringent specifications can be lengthy and costly, so recycling prices often reflect that.
There is roughly only 1.4 million tons of new nickel that is produced each year in the market compared to roughly 10 million tons of copper and 800 million tons of steel. Due to this significantly smaller amount of production, recycling nickel is crucial for the markets that rely on it.
At Consolidated Resources, Inc., we make recycling your nickel-alloyed metals easy. We provide customized storage containers, flexible pick up and transportation scheduling and work hard to ensure you get the highest dollar return possible. Trust Consolidated Resources, Inc. to make recycling your nickel and other scrap metals hassle-free.