Australia’s critical minerals processing capacity is being rebuilt. The Future Made in Australia Act and the Critical Minerals Strategy 2023-2030 are channelling federal capital into refining lithium hydroxide, vanadium electrolyte, rare earth oxides, nickel sulfate and cobalt sulfate domestically rather than exporting concentrate. Most of these processes are hydrometallurgical, wet chemistry, and that means aggressive chemical inventory: sulfuric acid (H2SO4), hydrochloric acid (HCl), sodium hydroxide / caustic soda (NaOH), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), ion exchange (IX) resin regeneration, solvent extraction (SX) organic. All of which sits in tanks.
Stainless steel is pitted by chloride chemistry. Fibreglass reinforced plastic (FRP, also called GRP) delaminates in concentrated oxidisers. Plastic, fabricated HDPE (high-density polyethylene), PP-H (polypropylene homopolymer) and PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) in the right combinations, handles the lifecycle. Industrial Plastics has fabricated for the Australian minerals sector since 1971 (Rio Tinto, BHP, Glencore are existing clients) and the same engineering applies directly to downstream processing facilities.
In 30 seconds. Critical minerals processing creates the most aggressive chemical inventory in Australian industry, sulfuric and hydrochloric acid leach circuits, hot caustic regeneration, hydrogen peroxide, mixed-metal sulfate solutions. PE100 (pipe-grade polyethylene) handles ambient sulfuric and caustic. PP-H takes you to 80°C and stronger acid concentrations. PVDF handles nitric acid, hot concentrated sulfuric, and the most extreme chemistry. We fabricate the full range to DVS 2205 (the German thermoplastic tank design code) with DVS 2207-qualified welders (DVS 2207 is the German plastics welding procedure standard), and we deliver the documentation lenders and government grant programs require.
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Why hydrometallurgy needs plastic, not steel
Most critical minerals processing is hydrometallurgical, leach the ore in acid or caustic to dissolve the target metal, separate impurities through ion exchange (IX) or solvent extraction (SX), then crystallise or electrowin the product. The inventory of chemicals involved is the same family our water treatment, mining and chemical tank clients already specify, scaled up to refinery-class throughput.
Material selection for critical minerals processing tankage is driven by three things:
- Chemistry, sulfuric acid leach (PP-H above 70% concentration, PVDF when hot), hydrochloric acid leach (PP-H or PVDF), caustic refining (HDPE for ambient, PP-H for hot), hydrogen peroxide for oxidation (PVDF), ammonia for extraction (PP-H)
- Temperature, most leach circuits run 40-90°C, which puts most service above the PE 24°C cap and into PP territory
- Documented design life, government grants under the Critical Minerals Strategy require capex justification with documented service life; DVS 2205-engineered tanks deliver a calculable 25-year design life
Material selection guide for critical minerals processing
| Process step | Chemistry | Recommended material |
|---|---|---|
| Sulfuric acid leach tank, bulk feed | H2SO4, 30-70%, 40-80°C | PP-H welded to DVS 2207, designed to DVS 2205 |
| Concentrated H2SO4 storage (above 70%) | Strong sulfuric, ambient | PVDF, or PP-H with internal lining |
| HCl leach | Hydrochloric acid, full range | PP-H, or PVDF for hot service |
| Caustic refining / NaOH | Sodium hydroxide 30-50%, 30-80°C | PP-H for hot, HDPE for ambient |
| Hydrogen peroxide oxidation | H2O2 35%+, 30-50°C | PVDF, the only material handling concentrated H2O2 in process service |
| Solvent extraction (SX) organic | Kerosene plus extractant (D2EHPA, Cyanex) | HDPE compatible with kerosene; PP-H if high temp |
| Ion exchange (IX) skid | Resin plus regenerant chemistry | HDPE for column shells, PP-H for hot regenerant lines |
| Electrowinning tankhouse cells | Sulfuric plus metal sulfate, 40-60°C | PP-H, operating temperature plus acid resistance |
| Crystalliser feed and mother liquor | Concentrated sulfates | HDPE or PP-H depending on operating temp |
| Tailings neutralisation | Lime slurry plus impacted water | HDPE, robust ambient service |
| Process water polishing | Treated water for reuse | HDPE (PE100) |
| Reagent dosing skids | Acids, bases, peroxide | Per chemical (refer compatibility checker) |
Commodity-specific notes
Lithium hydroxide processing
Australian lithium processing, Tianqi/IGO (Independence Group) at Kwinana, Albemarle at Kemerton, converts spodumene concentrate to lithium hydroxide via a roast-leach-precipitation route. The roast happens at high temperature in steel and refractory equipment. The leach (HCl or sulfuric) and the lithium carbonate / lithium hydroxide precipitation steps are wet chemistry. Tankage required: HCl storage and dosing, caustic, sodium carbonate, lithium-containing mother liquor, wash water. PP-H is the dominant material; PVDF for any peroxide or hot-acid duty.
Vanadium electrolyte (VRFB)
Vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) use a sulfuric acid plus vanadium sulfate electrolyte at roughly 30°C in operation. Manufacturing the electrolyte requires PP-H tankage for the mixed-oxidation-state vanadium acid chemistry, with PVDF for any concentrated-acid preparation steps. Australian projects (Avess, VSUN Energy, Australian Vanadium) are at various stages of pilot or commercial development.
Rare earth oxides
Australian rare earth elements (REE) projects (Lynas at Kalgoorlie, Iluka at Eneabba, Hastings Yangibana) use a mixed acid leach (sulfuric plus HCl) followed by complex solvent extraction circuits to separate the individual rare earths. The SX circuits use organic-aqueous contactors with extractant chemistry; PP-H and HDPE for most contactor tankage, PVDF for any nitric acid stripping. Tailings handling involves significant volumes of impacted water, HDPE pond liners and bunded tankage.
Nickel and cobalt sulfate refining
Battery-grade nickel sulfate and cobalt sulfate require very low-impurity processing. Sulfuric acid leach of MHP (mixed hydroxide precipitate) or matte, then sequential purification via solvent extraction. Operating temperatures often 40-80°C with concentrated sulfate solutions. PP-H is the workhorse; PVDF for any chlorination, peroxide oxidation or ammonia stripping stages.
Standards and compliance, at a glance
| Standard | Coverage |
|---|---|
| DVS 2205 | Fabricated thermoplastic tank design, wall thickness, weld factor, design life |
| DVS 2207 | Plastics welding procedure, welder qualification, weld procedures, weld records |
| AS/NZS 4766 | Australian/New Zealand Standard for polyethylene tanks |
| AS 1210 / AS 4041 | Australian Standards for pressure vessels (where pressurised plastic vessels are in scope) |
| ISO 9001:2015 | International quality management standard, full audit trail |
Australian context
- Critical Minerals Strategy 2023-2030, federal framework for domestic processing
- Future Made in Australia Act, $22.7 billion production tax incentives for critical minerals
- Critical Minerals Facility, over $4 billion deployed via Export Finance Australia
- Geographic clusters: Kwinana (WA, lithium, nickel), Townsville (QLD, Lava Blue, CopperString-adjacent), Mt Isa, Whyalla (SA), Bowen Basin, Hunter Valley (NSW)
Frequently asked questions
Stainless steel is pitted by chloride chemistry and FRP delaminates in concentrated oxidisers. Fabricated HDPE, PP-H and PVDF in the right combinations handle the sulfuric and hydrochloric leach circuits, hot caustic regeneration, peroxide and mixed metal sulfate solutions across the lifecycle.
PE100 for ambient sulfuric and caustic; PP-H for leach tanks at 30 to 70 percent sulfuric and 40 to 80 degrees, hydrochloric duty and hot caustic; PVDF for concentrated sulfuric above 70 percent, hot hydrochloric service and hydrogen peroxide oxidation.
Most leach circuits run 40 to 90 degrees, above the polyethylene continuous service cap, which puts the duty into polypropylene territory.
Yes. Grants under the Critical Minerals Strategy require capex justification with documented service life, and DVS 2205 engineered tanks deliver a calculable 25 year design life.
We have fabricated for the Australian minerals sector since 1971, with Rio Tinto, BHP and Glencore as existing clients, and the same engineering applies directly to downstream processing facilities.
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