It alloys with iron
and is very rarely found on its own.
It is therefore
extracted from a few different types of ore.
Nickel by Jeff-o-matic via Flickr.com
Sulphide
Ore Nickeline
Also
called Niccolite, this ore is not common to find. It is often found in
igneous rocks like gabbro, associated with chalcopyrite and pyrrhotite,
and can also be found in hydrothermal veins with cobalt, arsenic and
silver. It has a coppery colour.
Sulphide
Ore Pentlandite
Pentlandite
is the main ore of nickel, and it is often found together with
pyrrhotite. They often form together in molten magma as it cools. It is
usually massive and rarely forms crystals. It has a distinctive brassy
colour and can be found with chalcopyrite and pyrrhotite.
Sulphide
Ore Chloanthite
Chloanthite
is a tin white nickel ore with black streak and metallic lustre. There
are also the rammelsbergite, safflorite and skutterudite, but those are
no longer mined.
Laterite
Ore Garnierite
Garnierite
is a common name that applies to a few different minerals such as
nepoulite, willemsite and pimelite. It first forms as gabbro, but the
nickel ore can be a weathering product in certain conditions in warm
climates. It has a distinctive green colour similar to malachite.
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