After years of partnership between Xstrata Technology and Outokumpu, the two companies have reached a new height with a joint product development to turn duplex stainless steel in grade LDX 2101® into permanent cathode plates, improving cost effectiveness in copper metal production. The many benefits of LDX 2101® appealed to the Xstrata engineers, but its use in the demanding application was not without complications that needed to be overcome. The high strength of LDX 2101® makes it harder to flatten than austenitic grades, and LDX 2101® did not at first promise an adequate surface finish. Outokumpu specialists from research & development and cold rolling operations went to work with Xstrata engineers, and together they managed to solve the challenges. In close partnership, they developed an LDX 2101® sheet product that met Xstrata Technology’s requirements. Xstrata Technology tested the LDX 2101® plates, first in house, then in some of their customers’ plants to prove the concept. Xstrata Technology first put in an order for LDX 2101® sheet to manufacture a few hundred cathode plates. Xstrata’s confidence in LDX 2101® has grown as their experience in the grade has accrued, and the Outokumpu Australian sales company booked the first large order in August 2007. This order was for 667tns of LDX 2101® sheet to manufacture 20,000 plates for the solvent-extraction-electrowinning process of the Tenke copper project in the Congo. At around the same time, the sales company booked an order from Xstrata Technology for 1555tns of grade EN 1.4404 / ASTM 316L sheet, also to manufacture permanent cathode plates, demonstrating the success of the business relationship and the premium products that have been developed together over many years.
