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By G. Kyle Green

Zirconium chlorinator residues contain an array of rare earths, scandium, unreacted coke, and radioactive thorium and radium. Because of the radioactivity, the residues must be disposed in special waste containment facilities. As these sites become more congested, and with stricter environmental regulations, disposal of large volumes of wastes may become more difficult. To reduce the mass of disposed material, the U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) developed technology to recover rare earths, thorium and radium, and unreacted coke from these residues. This technology employs an HCl leach to solubilize over 99% of the scandium and thorium, and over 90% of the rare earths. The leach liquor is processed through several solvent extraction stages to selectively recover scandium, thorium, and rare earths. The leach residue is further leached with an organic acid to solubilize radium, thus allowing unreacted coke to be recycled to the chlorinator. The thorium and radium waste products, which comprise only 2.1% of the original residue mass, can then be sent to the radioactive waste facility.

Jan 1, 1995

By F. A. Steward

Copper is one of the trace minerals essential to life. It is added, usually in the form of copper sulfate, to virtually all formulated feedstuffs and to dietary supplements fed to animals on forage. Over the past five years, an improved inorganic copper source trademarked Micronutrients TBCC™, has been developed, tested and commercially introduced. TBCC is a crystalline form of basic copper chloride. Synthesis is accomplished in a continuous neutralization I crystallization process. In current commercial production, the primary sources of copper currently used as feedstocks are the etching solutions used to manufacture electronic printed wiring boards. These solutions have traditionally been managed as hazardous wastes, but their use to manufacture TBCC™ exempts them from regulation as wastes under the "Use/Reuse" provisions of RCRA. Research conducted over five years at multiple universities has shown that animals are healthier when fed this source of copper and that vitamin losses in feed are reduced by its use.

Jan 1, 2000

By Philip L. LeHoux

"Kennecott Barneys Canyon Mining Co. is a gold heap leaching facility that has been in operation since 1989. In 1994, a flotation plant was commissioned to remove sulphide minerals from refractory sulphide ore. Tailings from the plant are mixed with oxide heap leach material in order to produce a geotechnically stable agglomerate from which the gold is leached and recovered in a conventional heap leach cyanidation process. The experience to arrive at an effective blending methodology is discussed.IntroductionAgglomeration is the practice of binding fine particles to coarser rock or other fines in order to avoid the deleterious effects of mobilizing the fines during the course of heap leaching(l-Chamberlin). Agglomeration has been considered a key component of successful operation at many heap leach sites. If the ore is of sedimentary origin and crushed, there is a high likelihood that the resulting product will contain a significant quantity of fines and a skewed gradation, that i~, a disproportionate amount of coarse and fine particles, with few in the intermediate size range. The exact methodology for determining whether the practice of agglomeration will have to be integrated into the operating scheme has been well discussed. These conditions are primarily geotechnical and geochemical. This paper will deal with the specific experiences of Kennecott Barneys Canyon Mining Company in modifying the agglomeration practices to suit evolving operational requirements."

Jan 1, 1997

By Jianhang Hu, Li Yang, Yonggang Wei, Kongzhai Li

"In this paper, the pyrolysis of biomasses including bamboo, sawdust and walnut shell were performed in a tube furnace under temperatures between 400? and 600? to obtain biomass carbon, gas, and tar. Textural parameters analysis revealed the caloric value of biomass carbons between 32 MJ/kg and 34 MJ/kg. It also indicated that the surface of biomass carbon consists of mesopore and macropore structures. By using GC analysis, it was determined the main ingredients of pyrolysis gas are CO, H2, CO2, CH4, C2H4 and C2H6. Calculation states that the density of pyrolysis gas is roughly between 1.0 kg/m3 and 1.7 kg/m3, while the calorific value of pyrolysis gas is between 12000 kJ/m3 and 16500 kJ/m3, illustrating that pyrolysis gas is a median gas. The calorific value of biomass tar was found to be between 32 MJ/kg and 34 MJ/kg, with more than 80 compounds in the biomass tar identified by GC-MS method.IntroductionBiomass as a renewable source is the world's largest and most sustainable energy resource [1].The conversion of biomass has the potential to be a renewable and carbon neutral method of producing fuels and chemicals [2-4]. Pyrolysis is a thermo-chemical process defined as applying heat to degrade biomass in an inert atmosphere. It transforms unstable biomass and other organic materials into biomass carbon, gas, and tar [5]. Biomass carbon can be stored or transported much easier as compared to parent biomass or be converted to value added products such as activated carbons[6]; gas is a relatively low-energy-density fuel; tar can be considered as a source of useful chemicals[7].The characterization of biomass pyrolysis will lead to its increased understanding and utilization as a source of solid, liquid and gaseous products which can be used as fuels and petrochemical feedstock[8,9].In recent years, many researchers studied the effect of temperature on biomass pyrolysis product distribution characteristics in a variety of pyrolysis reactor[10]. Ramin Azargohar's paper [11] presents the results of characterization for biomass and investigates the effects of pyrolysis temperature on the pyrolysis products obtained by fast pyrolysis of four different types of biomass."

Jan 1, 2014

By H. A. F. de Souza, Dana S. Mills, P. E. Burgener

"ICP-MS has moved from a laboratory curiosity to a functional analytical tool. This paper discusses how ICP-MS has been used to solve difficult analytical problems encountered when analyzing various mine materials. Comparisons between analytical techniques applied to the analysis of gold and the platinum group metals illustrate the advantages and problems of ICPMS when. applied to trace levels of some metals iri the presence of ore grade metals. Interferences and matrix effects are compared to ICP, AA and Neutron Activation. The necessity to select chemical extractions which are compatible with ICP-MS are also discussed.The ICP-MS techniques explained in the examples on Au and precious group elements (PGE) have validity in analytical problems encountered in testing of trace metals in the presence of major elements found in mine materials. Exploration and environmental testing are other areas that require the same analytical approach to quantify trace levels in the presence of major interfering elements normally associated with mining environments."

Jan 1, 1999

By Shi Yuan

Molten copper was deoxidized using a one-end-closed yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) tube. A thin layer of porous Ni-Zr02 cermet electrode was deposited on the inner wall of the YSZ tube. The outer surface of the tube was in contact with the melt and the inner surface with a flowing reducing gas. Without applying external EMF, the melt was deoxidized by short-circuiting the melt with the cermet electrode. The deoxidation process was analyzed and the rate controlling steps were identified. These experiments were also conducted at different temperatures to evaluate the effect of temperature on the deoxidation kinetics.

Jan 1, 1994

By Bin Du

In recent years, concurrent product design and process is gaining popularity and will become a norm of the industry of the future. Forging has been a critical manufacturing process for production of components with superior tensile strength, toughness and grain flow. This paper describes an expen system which is being developed for forging die design and forging process analysis in concurrent engineering environment. Rules and guidelines pertaining to forgeability are formulated and incorporated into the knowledge-base in building the system. The system is built using an object-oriented paradigm. The object-oriented approach and hierarchical rule structure paradigm are briefly discussed. Finite element analysis packages (ALPID-2D) were incorporated into the program to give the simulation result of the forging process. The system can automatically produce a competent design and recommend a set of processing parameters for a given product. The designer can modify the design according to the result of the simulation.

Jan 1, 1992

By George A. Calboreanu

In order to overcome drilling and tapping of high hardness wear resistent material in slurry pumps, most of time mild steel inserts are mounted in the mold and after pouring they become an integrated part of the casting. This process is limiting the size and design possibilities of slurry pumps and efforts were made to drill and tap the hard iron itself. The paper will present practical results obtained in drilling and tapping Cr-Mo wear resistent material with hardness in excess of 700 HBN. The life time of the slurry pump parts used in hazardous waste fuel transportation with high slurry velocity and 15% solid loading some of it being quartz, increased 2.5 to 6 times.

Jan 1, 1996

By Claude Lorenson

"The Spyrometer™ imaging pyrometer brings new dimension of imaging capabilities to temperature measurement technology by combining a high temperature video camera with scanning optical pyrometry. This gives the operators the ability to observe process conditions while measuring the temperature of virtually any object or region in the field of view. Since the lens tube of the camera can be air or water cooled, it is possible to see inside furnaces giving a very good view of many different types of metallurgical processes. Specific benefits in process knowledge and maintenance tasks for furnaces in different types of metal industries are discussed.1-Principles of Imaging PyrometryLens tube, camera and processorImaging pyrometry is the combination of video imaging and computer-driven pyrometry that measures the temperature of certain zones (selected by the operator) within the image viewed on the monitor screen. To obtain a detailed image of the metallurgical process under observance, it is necessary to place the optical objective of the camera close to the process. The Spyrometer™ (which is Quadtek's tradename for its imaging pyrometer) objective is housed in a lens tube that is cooled and permits insertion inside the vessel of interest. The length of the lens tube is chosen on the basis of making sure that the tip of the tube is just beyond the refractories lining the inside of the furnace. In most pyrometallurgical processes, we have found that the most reliable system set-up uses a water cooled shroud to cool the lens tube optics. A sapphire window provides maximum protection from the environment. Even in the case of the water cooled version, there is an air purge for the lens that keeps the objective clean and protects against hot metal splashes."

Jan 1, 1997

By Roderick Guthrie

Gas injection into liquid steel baths is widely practiced, ever since the early days of Bessemer’s pneumatic steelmaking process. What has not been fully appreciated is the critical role of bubble sizes for delivering higher quality commercial steels than is presently possible. This was first proposed by Prof P. Hayes and his research group. Using a full-scale water model of a typical 4-strand Ladle-Tundish-Mold system, we demonstrate the potential advantages of modifying a typical ladle shroud, to generate microbubbles within the water flowing into the tundish. This is possible by taking advantage of high shear rates and turbulence kinetic energy available in that region. These microbubbles enhanced the removal of “micro-inclusions” (hollow glass microspheres) in the 5–50 micron size range, to the upper surface of the tundish. There, they were absorbed into an overlaying “slag” phase. Accompanying CFD studies confirmed that no microbubbles in the size range generated (500–900 μm), pass through the submerged entry nozzles into the moulds.

By Ramiro Escudero G.

Since the introduction of column flotation almost forty years ago the column technology has grown into several non-mineral applications such as among others the effluent treatment, soils recovery and de-inking of recycled paper. Recent studies have demonstrated that particular characteristics of the dispersion (bubble size, gas holdup, bubble surface area flux) are needed for a given flotation column duty. In this work, two kind of spargers were tested (i.e., internal and external) using a 4 inch column lab in a two phase system. Results show that the external sparger provides a dispersion with characteristics that include those produced by the two internal spargers.

Jan 1, 2003

By Donald P. Ziegler, James F. Klausner, Srinivas S. Garimella

"By 2015, nearly half the world's population will live in ""water stressed"" areas. Production of fresh water utilizing waste heat from industrial processes has been identified globally as a research priority.About 15% of the electricity required to produce aluminum is lost as waste heat in the off-gas. However, the low temperature (low grade) of the heat limits reuse. The off-gases contain 50-150 ppm SO2 ; tightening regulations coupled with increasing coke sulfur levels are motivating SO2 control, for which seawater scrubbing is attractive for smelters with suitable access.We describe a process that produces fresh water, utilizing the waste heat while scrubbing SO2 . It uses direct contact between seawater and off-gas to humidify the off-gas. The vapor is subsequently condensed. In smelter trials, a unit treating a slip stream produced high quality water in the anticipated quantity, attaining over 95% SO2 scrubbing. Future work involves scaling the process to be economically attractive.BackgroundPopulation growth, coupled with industrialization and urbanization, are increasing demand for water. Water scarcity already affects every continent. Around 1.2 billion people, or almost one-fifth of the world's population, live in areas of water scarcity, and 500 million people are approaching this situation. By 2025, 1.8 billion people will be living in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity, and two-thirds of the world's population could be living under water stressed conditions (< 1,700 m3 per person annually) [1]. An assessment by the U.S. General Accounting Office revealed that under normal conditions, by 2013, water managers in 36 states in the USA anticipate water shortages, and that the number might grow to 46 states under drought conditions [2].The obvious choice to alleviate water scarcity is the 97% of available water in the oceans, which is saline and requires desalination for use in biological, agricultural and industrial applications. Technologies developed for desalination include Thermal Distillation, Reverse Osmosis (RO), Electro-Dialysis, and Vacuum Freezing. Distillation and RO are the most commercially prominent. Thermal distillation technologies include Multiple Effect Distillation (MED) and Multi-Stage Flashing (MSF). The report commissioned by the World Bank [3] is one of the many excellent references on desalination technologies. According to the International Desalination Association working paper [4], there were more than 17,348 industrial scale desalination plants installed or contracted by 2004. The total production from these plants is on the order of 8.3 billion imperial gallons per day. RO provides 47.2% of the total capacity. The leading thermal process, MSF, provides 36.5% of the total capacity. Although MSF and RO technologies currently provide the most cost effective means for desalination, their drawback is that they are very energy intensive, and whether or not they remain cost effective strongly depends on energy prices and energy supply."

Jan 1, 2012

By R. Rajiv Srivastava

Brine leaching of a TSL processed zinc-plant residue (ZPR), containing 83.3% anglesite, has been investigated for lead recovery. A prior treatment of ZPR in acid solution did not show any significant effect of acid concentration in zinc dissolution. The study reveals that the solubility limits of PbCl2 is as an important factor with respect to the brine concentration and pulp density in lixiviant. The dissociated sulfate ions hinder the formation of PbCl2 on prolong leaching (above 60 min), while exhibiting the reverse solubility of lead as PbSO4. A 3-step leaching process could yield >92% leaching efficiency when the parameters were maintained as: 10% pulp density in a 250 g/L NaCl solution, 80 °C temperature, and 60 min time. This leaves the insoluble ferrite, sulfides and oxy-sulfates of zinc and lead in the final residue as revealed by the XRD characterization.

By Vincent Canaguier

Methane is increasingly considered as a promising reductant for metal oxides, including chromite. To assess the possibilities of such reduction route, the gas-solid reactions between Ar–CH4–H2 gas mixtures and synthetic chromites are studied between 950 and 1050 °C. The influence of Mg and Al additions on the reduction-caburization of (Fe,Mg)(Cr,Al)2O4 solid solution is investigated thermodynamically, structurally and kinetically. The product phases are examined by x-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). The reaction rate is derived from real-time exhaust gas measurements and post-reaction product analyses such as oxygen analysis. Kinetic models are proposed based on the product phase morphologies and confronted with the empirical data.

By E. Krystad, G. Tranell

"The kinetics of boron removal from liquid silicon during slag refining, as a process step in the production of solar grade silicon, has been investigated by means of small scale mass transfer experimental series at 1600°C, using a graphite crucible. The slags were SiO2-CaO based, with or without addition of approx. 19 wt% MgO. Experiments were carried out at slag-metal ratios of 1 or 2, where the silicon initially contained approx. 250 ppm boron. The metal-slag mass transfer coefficients for boron were found to be in the order of 1-3 · 10-6 m/s and were largely influenced by slag composition. The mass transfer rate was higher for the MgO-containing slag than the slags without MgO. The final equilibrium distribution of boron between metal and slag, LB, was determined to be in the order of 2.3-3.3.I. INTRODUCTIONRecent years have seen a race in industry and research aimed at obtaining a reliable metallurgical route for production of silicon for solar cells (SoG-Si) from metallurgical grade (MG) silicon. Metallurgical routes can successfully challenge the traditional chemical routes for production of SoG-Si if they generate metal of sufficient purity while being less expensive in terms of production cost and energy consumption. Efficient removal of boron is one of the greatest obstacles in the refining of silicon by a metallurgical route, because the segregation coefficient of boron in silicon makes directional solidification unfeasible; in addition, the vapour pressure of boron is not high enough for removal by vacuum refining. However, the thermodynamic properties of boron makes removal from silicon by oxidation possible, and thus the process of slag refining of silicon has been receiving increasing attention as a method for boron removal."

Jan 1, 2012

By Nagahiro Saito, Takahiro Ishizaki, Daisuke Yata, Akio Fuwa

"Ternary compound-semiconductor, CuInTe2, film was deposited cathodically under potentiostatic conditions on titanium substrate from aqueous solution containing CuCl2, InCl3, TeO and HCI in this study.The deposition parameters such as electrolytic solution composition, potential and temperature were optimized· for electrodeposition of CulnTe2. Structural characterization of the: deposited film was also carried out using XRD and SEM. Electrodeposited films Were prepared and analyzed for their chemical composition using ICP. The ICP analyses showed that the stoichiometry of the films could be controlled by (1) the deposition potential and/or by (2) the electrolytic bath composition.1. IntroductionThe ternary chalcopyrite type compound semiconductors exhibit such electrical, chemical and optical properties that make them promising for photovoltaic devices (Kazmerski and Wagner 1985)(1). Many researches have been devoted to the characterization of these materials for over one and a half decades. High efficiency solar cells based on p-CulnSe2/n-CdS have been reported (Mickelson and Chen 1983)(2).The electrodeposited fil ns of semiconductors have more advantage than other physical and chemical deposition techniques; it is relatively easy and economic technique and the semiconducting properties such as band-gap variation, concentration of dopant stoichiometric composition and so on can be controlled with some accuracy. The electrodepositions of the ternary CuInS2, CulnSe2 have been reported by many workers (Hodes and Cahen 1986, Bhattachaya 1983, Singh et al 1986, Lokhande and can be prepared as both p-type and n-type. Therefore, its potential for application in optical and photovoltaic devices is one of the great interests. Bhattacharaya and Rajeshwar (1986)(9) reported the electrodeposition of CuInTe2 from an acidic bath· on indium tin oxide (ITO) and Mo substrate. Triethanolamine (TEA) was used as a complexing agent for indium. The electrodeposited CuInTe2 films were non-stoichiometric in composition under all their experimental conditions by electron-probe micro analysis (EPMA) and Auger depth profile analysis. In this paper, we report our results on the behavior .of Cu-In-Te electrodeposition from ·acidic baths; the preparation of CulnTe2 and the effect of bath composition on electrodeposited films obtained."

Jan 1, 2000

By Shu-cai Zhou

"To understand the solidification behavior of austenitic heat-resistant stainless steel (TP34 7) in rotary electromagnetic-field, the influence of electromagnetic stirring in mold (M-EMS) on solidification structure of TP34 7 heat resistant steel in a round billet continuous casting was investigated based on industrial experiments. The results indicate that the excellent billet solidification structure of TP34 7 heat resistant steel can be obtained with appropriate electromagnetic stirring parameters. The solidification structure of TP34 7 heat resistant steel can be remarkably refmed, central porosity and shrinkage cavity can be remarkably decreased and equiaxed grains zone widens was enlarged. The industrial trials verify that the stirring intensity of TP34 7 heat resistant austenitic stainless steel should be higher comparing with plain carbon steel. Due to a higher viscosity, rotating speed of molten stainless steel was 20-30% lower than that of molten carbon steel in the same magnetic flux density.IntroductionIn recent years, the development of ultra super critical (USC) plants is accelerated by the demands of environment protection and energy saving, and USC plants with steam temperature and pressure conditions in excess of 593°C and 24.lMPa respectively were constructed. To achieve the goal, it is important to develop new materials with excellent high temperature strength, superior resistance to oxidation and corrosion at high temperature. Besides, their cost must be low enough to meet the requirement of plants [ 1]. TP34 7H steel is promising austenitic heat-resistant steel, which is used as superheater/reheater tube material and is extensively used for high temperature components and fossil-fired power plants, and suitable to be used in USC boilers plant. This kind steel contains with about 0. 7%Nb and it keeps higher allowable stress and creep rupture strength than TP304 and TP321H [1-2]. TP347H has conventionally been produced by ingot casting followed by forging and rolling. Recently, in order to decrease the production cost, challenging trials to produce these types of alloys by a continuous casting (CC) process have been attempted. However, the solidification structure of austenitic stainless steel is one of the key issues that attract more attention. Due to the low thermal conductivity of TP347H heat resistant stainless steel (much smaller than that of plain carbon steel), pronounced defects during continuous casting of austenitic heat-resistant steel such as coarse columnar, center porosity and coarse bridging, greatly influence mechanical properties of fmished products.A widely used technique in metallurgy is the inductive drive of molten metals using rotational or traveling magnetic fields. Recently, rotary electromagnetic stirring (EMS) has been applied to reducing various defects and improving increase the solidification structure of the metals in the continuous casting of steel, Al-based alloys and Mg-based alloys [3-8]. Electromagnetic stirring of plain carbon and low alloy steel in the continuous casting bloom and slab is well established for improving the quality of cast products [9-11] and is widely used in industry. However, very few literatures on electromagnetic casting of heat resistant stainless steel have reported. In this work, an industrial plant trial was performed to clarify the effect ofM-EMS on the macroscopic quality ofTP347heat resistant steel billet, in which the regularity and mechanism of the influence of EMS on solidification casting billet were discussed."

Jan 1, 2014

By M. D. Light

An intelligent control system (ICS) is being developed for ferrous iron oxidation by Thiobacillus ferroxitdans. The ICS provides computerized data acquisition and&apos; control of process variables (temperature, Eh, pH, dissolved oxygen arid carbon dioxide concentrations and dilution rate) to maintain the ferrous iron oxidation at the highest possible rate. The ICS uses fuzzy logic for analysis of data inputs and implementation of control strategies. T:his paper provides preliminary information on the development of the ICS and? its operation.

Jan 1, 1991

By Chen L. Lin

Scientific visualization is an ideal methodology for investigating complex phenomena that are characterized by large amounts of data. Furthermore, it is invaluable in the study of processes that evolve in time. Scientific visualization relies heavily on computer graphics, image processing and video technologies. Specific applications of scientific visualization in the minerals and materials processing fields that are considered in this paper include: 1) applied CT technology for multiphase materials and minerals, 2) time averaged density profla in air- sparged hydrocyclone (ASH) flotation and 3) dynamic motion analysis of ball mill grinding.

Jan 1, 1993

By J. Tang, B. Q. Li, R. Akarapu

"An integrated model is developed to represent the three-dimensional electromagnetic wave propagation and thermal phenomena during microwave heating of ceramics and dielectric/biological materials. The model development is based on the edge finite element formulation for electromagnetic fields and the node fmite element formulation for thermal phenomena. Results are presented and compared well with available analytical solutions and experimental measurements. With the model, the effect of sample positions on the electromagnetic and thermal field distributions is studied.IntroductionMicrowave, as an electro-heating source, has been widely used in the processing industries for packaged foods and other materials. The commonly used household microwave oven is a typical example of microwave heating processes. Other industrial microwave processing systems include large-scale microwave guides and cavities, which are used for the sintering operations as required for making ceramic components or for sterilizing the packaged foods."

Jan 1, 2004