Preparation of Pure Nickel by Electrolysis of a Chloride Solution

Pure nickel was prepared in the form of malleable electrodeposited sheets as thick as 6 mm from purified nickel chloride‐boric acid solution using iridium‐platinum alloy anodes. The over‐all reaction is NiCl 2 = Ni metal + Cl 2 gas As electrolysis proceeded, purified chloride solution was added automatically to maintain the metal content of the electrolyte. The total of spectrographically detectable impurities is estimated to be about 34 ppm. Carbon content of 26 ppm was reduced to 9 ppm by heating the metal in tank hydrogen and it is believed that any hydrogen, oxygen, and chlorine in the nickel were also substantially reduced by this treatment.