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Primary nickel production uses acids and carbon-based reductants, emitting about 20\u2009tons of carbon dioxide per ton of nickel produced\n                    <jats:sup>5\u20137<\/jats:sup>\n                    . Here we present a method using fossil-free hydrogen-plasma-based reduction to extract nickel from low-grade ore variants known as laterites. We bypass the traditional multistep process and combine calcination, smelting, reduction and refining into a single metallurgical step conducted in one furnace. This approach produces high-grade ferronickel alloys at fast reduction kinetics. Thermodynamic control of the atmosphere of the furnace enables selective nickel reduction, yielding an alloy with minimal impurities (&lt;0.04\u2009wt% silicon, approximately 0.01\u2009wt% phosphorus and &lt;0.09\u2009wt% calcium), eliminating the need for further refining. The proposed method has the potential to be up to about 18% more energy efficient while cutting direct carbon dioxide emissions by up to 84% compared with current practice. Our work thus shows a sustainable approach to help resolve the contradiction between the beneficial use of nickel in sustainable energy technologies and the environmental harm caused by its production.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1038\/s41586-025-08901-7","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,2]],"date-time":"2025-05-02T07:14:25Z","timestamp":1746170065000},"page":"365-373","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":74,"title":["Sustainable nickel enabled by hydrogen-based reduction"],"prefix":"10.1038","volume":"641","author":[{"given":"U.","family":"Manzoor","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4351-7520","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"L.","family":"Mujica Roncery","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0194-6124","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"D.","family":"Raabe","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5761-4981","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"I. 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