Upgrading the Kalgoorlie Nickel Smelter's Oxygen Plant

Our Kalgoorlie team have made significant strides in upgrading the oxygen plant at the Nickel Smelter, and are now in the process of installing the second of three Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption (VPSA) units.  

These plants will each supply the smelting process with over 150 tonnes per day of gaseous oxygen at 90 – 95 per cent purity. 

Completing this project will allow more high-purity oxygen to be fed into the smelting process, increasing the smelter's total output.  

Kieran Russell, Senior Project Engineer at Monadelphous, explains that the components of the plant are supplied in modular form. 

"Our scope of work is to land the various vessels, skids and equipment, and tie them into each other and the wider plant, making modifications where required," he said. 

"We are also fabricating and installing ancillary piping and structural packages to support the new plant." 

In the latest update to the project, the team recently completed loading the Adsorption (PP) Vessels with a Molecular Sieve, which acts as a desiccant to remove moisture from the process gas. The vessel loading is one of the project's most critical tasks.  

Over a 10-day window, over 400 x 205 litre drums of sieve need to be loaded by the team into the PP Vessels. Despite being initially slowed by bad weather, they did a fantastic job and were able to stay on schedule. 

The team commenced work on the new plant's cooling water system in August 2023 with crew numbers fluctuating between 14 and 18 people in any given week. 

"The client project managers and supervisors have been very easy to work with, and have a great relationship with our supervisor," Kieran said. 

 "The installation of the PP and Surge Vessels in December made a very noticeable difference to the landscape of the plant. These were some of the first large lifts on the project, so it was fantastic to see they went ahead safely and without issue." 

A few more key pieces of equipment are due to arrive from the United States in the coming weeks. Once these are landed and tied in, the crew will be ready to start commissioning.