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By Gordon D. Jarvinen

Polymer Filtration (PF) Is an innovative, selecthle metal removal technology. Chelating, water-soluble polymers are used to selectively bind the desired metal ions and ultrafiltration is used to concentrate the polymer-metal complex producing a permeate with low levels of the targeted metal ion. When applied to the treatment of, Industrial metal-bearing aqueous process streams, the permeate water can often be reused within the process and the metal ions reclaimed. This technology is applicable to many types of industrial aqueous streams with widely varying chemistries. Application of PF to 'aqueous streams from nuclear materials processing and electroplating operations will be described.

Jan 1, 1999

By F. Tailoka

Microporous membranes have been used to create a very fine dispersion of bubbles which greatly enhances the mass transfer of electroactive species to the electrode. Using this system, it has been shown that it is possible to electrowin copper as a coherent planar deposit, at high current densities, from copper chloride solutions.

Jan 1, 1990

By Yong J. Kim, J. M. Park

"Solid/melt interface shape during continuous casting process has a strong influence on the resulting microstructure of the ingot. The interface shape is primarily governed by the heat flow condition between the molten metal and mold (or container). The roll of the microstructural transition resulting from various solid/melt interface shapes is discussed using the Sn-22.6wt%Pb alloy. Three different types of mold such as cold mold, resistantly heated mold, and electromagnetically heated mold were used to generate those interfaces having different curvatures. Experimental measurements of complete temperature profile along the axis and surface of the ingot during downward continuous casting are presented to determine the solid/melt interface geometry. The results provide an explanation of the ingot property with emphasis on microstructure.IntroductionA large scale of continuous casting process of alloys often has a rather deep V channel type of solid/melt interface resulting from a limited heat flow condition. As a result, the deep V type solid/melt interface shape entraps defects such as pores and inclusions and also creates canter segregation. In order to reduce the defects concentration, electromagnetic stirring(EMS) mechanism has been applied to the melt in the channel[l]. Speith and Bungeroth introduced first experimental EMS device to the continuous caster in 1952.[2] Today, with wide ranges of benefit, a large variety of such technique is available. Electromagnetic field on the melt can be divided into three aspects. First, eddy current is induced on the metal surface by alternating magnetic field with high frequency, which results in heating the metal. Second, electromagnetic body force which is generated by the magnetic field and the eddy current reduces the melt pressure on mold or support the melt not to contact with the mold[3,4,5]. This force is used for electromagnetic casting process(EMC). Finally, it causes stirring in the melt. Many research efforts have been done on the EMC process to improve surface quality of slab[6] and control meniscus shape where three phases such as melt, solidified metal, and mold powder coexist[7,8]. However, the eddy current heating effect on the surface of the ingot was less considered. It is worth noting that induced eddy current on the surface of slab melts the solidified shell and thus changes the heat flow condition between the mold and melt. Mold heating effect was first proposed by A. Ohno[9] and its processing conditions were identified in details[ 10, 11]. The so-called Ohno process is based on the fact that by keeping the mold temperature slightly above the melting temperature of the liquid, no grain can be nucleated on the mold wall[12]."

Jan 1, 1998

By R. Padilla

The reaction of chalcopyrite with gaseous sulfur has been investigated in the range 350-450 °C in order to transform this mineral into a more acid soluble copper sulfide and insoluble iron sulfide. The results of thermodynamic analysis of this system as well as the X-ray diffraction analysis of the reaction products showed that in the temperature range 350 400°C the sulfidation reaction proceeded without formation of intermediate copper-iron sulfides according to: The effects of temperature and time on the conversion of chalcopyrite were studied. Conversion of chalcopyrite reached about 80% very rapidly with increase in temperature up to about 400°C. The recovery of copper from the sulfidized samples was determined by leaching in oxygenated 1.2M H2S04, 2M NaCI solution. Copper recoveries over 90 % were obtained from samples sulfidized for 30 min at temperatures lower than 400°C.

Jan 1, 2001

By M. Neises, M. Roeb, C. Sattler, S. Stenger

"A two-step thermo-chemical cycle process has been developed and investigated. It is based on metal oxide redox pair systems, which can split carbon dioxide as well as water molecules by extracting oxygen atoms and reversibly incorporating them into their lattice. If concentrated solar radiation is used as the heat source, a promising method exists to produce synthesis gas from water and CO2. An easy way of operation is gained by the combination of a ceramic substrate as the absorber structure, which can be heated to high temperatures with concentrated solar radiation, and of a metal oxide coating which is capable to carry out the redox reactions. The performance and kinetics of a ferrite based redox material coated on ceramic substrates were investigated in a laboratory set-up. CO2 could be reduced with significant conversions. In addition, several side reactions were observed like the formation of carbon and like the Boudouard reaction.IntroductionThe search for alternative energy carriers and for processes able to reuse carbon dioxide stimulates the research for sustainable routes of alternative fuel production. In the scope of this search thermo-chemical processes combined with sources of concentrated solar energy have become more and more attractive. Ideally, the only raw materials for such processes are water (H2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2) enabling not only a process free of emissions, but also allow to reduce emissions of other processes by reusing CO2 to provide synthesis gas, which itself can be applied to produce chemical commodities or even better synthetic fuels like methanol or petrol.In contrast to the direct splitting of those raw materials, thermochemical cycles split water and CO2 in several steps and enable hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO) generation at temperatures controllable by today’s technical equipment. One of the most interesting thermochemical cycles is a two-step process using metal oxide based redox systems. During the first step of this cycle (the regeneration step) the metal oxide is reduced setting some of its lattice oxygen free according to reaction (1). In the next step (the splitting) the reduced and activated material is oxidised by withdrawing oxygen from water and CO2 and at the same time hydrogen and CO is set free according to reactions (2a) and (2b) respectively."

Jan 1, 2011

By J. A. Holmes

Due to varying and complex mineralogy, the flotation tailings from the Chingola Concentrator have, for some years, contained upwards of 0.4% acid soluble copper. In 1968, an investigation was initiated, to determine a method for recovering this acid soluble copper. This initial investigation concluded with a recommendation to install a leach-solvent extraction-electrowinning plant at Chingola, to treat up to 900 000 tonnes of material per month, for an additional copper production of some 4 500 tonnes per month. The process consists basically of six stages :- Materials reclamation handling and preparation, acid leaching in air agitated pachucas, solid-liquid separation by countercurrent washing in thickeners, solution concentration and purification by solvent extraction, copper recovery by electrowinning, and residue neutralisation and disposal. This paper describes the development of the main parameters for design of each of the six sections, and gives details of the final plant design. Problems encountered in commissioning and initial operations are commented on, particularly insofar as they indicated any errors or misjudgements in the design. The choice of materials of construction is commented on in some detail.

Jan 1, 1976

By Antti Roine

Sulfidic zinc concentrates are usually roasted in a fluidized bed furnace into sulfur-free oxide form. Metallic zinc is produced from this oxidic calcine using hydrometallurgical leaching, solution purification and electrowinning stages. The roasting step is necessary because zinc oxides are easier to dissolve using traditional leaching methods than zinc sulfides. The Kokkola Zinc smelter uses various types of zinc concentrates and secondary materials as feed mixture. This makes it difficult to find optimum process parameters for the roaster when the composition and particle size distribution of the feed mixture varies even on a daily basis. Certain conditions may even cause difficult accretion problems or increase the amount of calcine in the process off-gas line excessively. A thermochemical heat and material balance model was developed for process advisor, in order to estimate the effects of different process parameters (temperature, process air coefficient, concentrate feed, oxygen enrichment, water feed, etc.) on the heat balance, roasting temperature and calcine composition. This model was constructed using the heat balance module of HSC Chemistry 4.0 software. The prevailing chemical compounds in the concentrate and calcine were verified using mineralogical analyses and equilibrium calculations. The roasting process seems to operate near chemical equilibrium conditions, if the behavior of the main components is considered. This paper describes briefly the basic principles of the calculation model and outlines the results with several diagrams and discussion. The calculated results were in reasonable agreement with the recent process air oxygen enrichment and water feed test campaigns carried out at Kokkola in 1999.

Jan 1, 2000

By Y. Ono

In lightweight metal processing such as aluminum (AI) and magnesium (Mg), metal cleanliness is a crucial process parameter for refining, part manufacturing and recycling in order to obtain high quality parts and products. In this paper, techniques for cleanliness evaluation of molten AI and Mg using ultrasonic probes with clad steel buffer rods having high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) are presented. Due to the high SNR of the ultrasonic probes used, backscattered ultrasonic signals from inclusions, which may be oxide films and/or particles, in molten Mg and those from silicon carbide particles, having an average size of 50f.Ull, added in molten AI are successfully detected with reflection configurations of pulse-echo and/or pitch-catch modes at an ultrasonic frequency of 10 MHz. In addition, relative cleanliness evaluation of molten Al and Mg is demonstrated. In order to establish the procedure and to investigate the optimum system configurations for cleanliness evaluation of molten metals, particle flow simulation system using water and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) particles has been constructed. Counting the number and measuring the size distribution of the PVC particles, having an average diameter of 128um, suspended in water with the PVC volume concentrations of 5ppm and 10ppm are performed with ultrasonic pitch-catch mode. The counted numbers of particles by the presented method and system have good agreement with the calculated results with a count error of less than 10% or two counts. Based on the results obtained with water simulation experiments, the prototype system for cleanliness evaluation of molten Mg by counting and sizing inclusions has been developed. Keywords: Ultrasound, Clad buffer rod, Molten metal, Aluminum, Magnesium, Inclusion detection, Cleanliness measurement, Counting, Sizing

Jan 1, 2003

By Kazuki Morita

Dissolution mechanism and solubility of chlorine in the oxide melts, such as CaO-SiO2-Al2O3 (-Na2O), Na2O-SiO2-Al2O3 and CaO-SiO2-FeO systems, have been equilibrium technique was employed with controlled Po2 and PCl2, (Po2 = 10-6 -10 19 atm, PCl2 10-6 -10-13 atm at 1673-1748 K). The solubility of chlorine in the 40mass%CaO-40mass%SiO2- 20mass%Al2O3, slag was found to vary in proportion to Pb2/ w and pc/z/p' which proved that chlorine dissolved in the melts as C1 anion. Hence, the chloride capacity (CCI-), indicating the ability of molten oxide to absorb chlorine, has been defined as; The Ccl value was observed to increase with increasing slag basicity and temperature, and showed a reasonable relationship with that Of CS2-. Based on the result obtained in the present study, chlorine distribution during incineration with slags was predicted quantitatively.

Jan 1, 2003

A study was undertaken to remove the Se from waste solutions using a raw form of the biomass called Iota Chips derived from the seaweed, Eucheuma spinosum. Removal of Se from solutions was investigated as a function of time, pH, conc. of Se in solution (0.1 to 100 ppm) and lota Chips to liquid ratios of 10-2 to 10-5. For solutions containing initial conc. of 0.1 ppm Se, with the addition of Iota Chips at a solid to liquid ratio of 10-3, the Se conc. decreased to 0.03 ppm in about 3 hours. Iota Chips absorption capacity to the Se and its application to the treatment of the metallurgical processing effluents are discussed.

Jan 1, 1992

Reduction of titania and ilmenite ores by Cf4-H2-Ar gas mixture was investigated in a laboratory fixed bed reactor. Titania was reduced to titanium oxycarbide in the temperature range of 12OO-1500°C. At 1400-15000C, the extent of reduction of titania to titanium oxycarbide achieved more than 85% in 90 min. Optimum conditions for titanium oxycarbide synthesis by reduction of titania include temperature in the range of 1300-1450°C, methane content 8 vol% and hydrogen content above 35 vol%. Ilmenite ore was reduced by Cf4-HrAr gas mixture to metallic iron and titanium oxycarbide. Metallic iron catalyzed methane cracking and solid carbon deposition. Titanium oxycarbide formed at temperatures as low as 950°C. The optimum temperature for reduction of ilmenite is 1200°C and the optimum methane content is 8 vol%. Increase in hydrogen content increased both rate and extent of reduction. With 5 vol% CH4-75 vol% Hr20 vol% Ar gas mixture, the reduction of ilmenite completed in 60 min. Reduction of titanium oxides to oxycarbide with following chlorination may be an efficient alternative technology for processing of titanium minerals.

Jan 1, 2001

By Matthew John M. Krane, Christopher J. Vreeman, J. David Schloz

"A continuum mixture model of the direct chill casting process is used to model the transport phenomena and solidification behavior in the Direct Chill casting of an Al - 6 wt% Cu billet using Wagstaffs AirslipTM process. The model, which includes the transport of free-floating solid particles, can simulate the effect of a grain refiner on macrosegregation and fluid flow. Numerical predictions of sump profiles and composition and temperature fields are presented. Two 45 cm diameter billets were cast under production conditions with and without grain refiner. Temperature and composition measurements and sump profiles are compared to the numerical results. The comparison shows excellent agreement for the grain refined case. It is believed that an incorrect model assumption prevents good agreement in the non-grain refined billet. IntroductionDirect chill casting is a semi-continuous process in which molten aluminum enters the top of a water-cooled mold, is cooled, and forms a solid ingot drawn out below (Figure l(b)). The molten aluminum begins to solidify due to the cooling effect of the mold wall. As the ingot is withdrawn from the bottom of the mold, water jets impinge on the surface, directly cooling the billet and forming a solid layer around a liquid melt, commonly referred to as the sump.A particular defect that occurs in a wide range of casting processes, including the direct chill (DC) casting of aluminum alloys, is macrosegregation, the uncontrolled redistribution of alloying elements on the scale of the ingot during solidification. Macrosegregation in DC cast ingots can produce non-uniform mechanical properties [l], which affects the behavior of the metal during downstream forming and heat treat operations."

Jan 1, 2001

By James W. Evans, Brian R. Wildey

"Carbon has been the principal reducing agent in producing metals for centuries. Carbon is an inexpensive reducing agent, but also an effective one, as any undergraduate who knows her Ellingham diagrams is aware. Even in the production of aluminum, an electrolytic process, carbon consumed at the anodes serves to reduce the voltage of the Hall-Héroult cell. The interest in reducing the amount of anthropogenic CO2 has led to this examination of whether a switch to hydrogen as a major reductant is feasible and economic. The main source of hydrogen is natural gas and its production entails the generation of CO2; however, that CO2 is more easily captured than, say, the CO2 leaving an iron blast furnace. Calculations and speculations lead to conclusions about whether there is significant benefit to be obtained from such a radical change in our way of producing metals and the approximate cost of such change.IntroductionThe 1991 paper by Forrest and Szekely1 was one of the first to examine the impact of CO2 emissions from the primary metals industries on global climate change. These authors compared data from 1968 and 1985 and reported a drop in carbon emissions from 115.8 million tons to 65.6Mt over this period, the latter figure representing approximately 1% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Much of this reduction was due to a drop in steel output (with carbon emissions increasing within the aluminum and copper industries in this period) but some were due to technological changes such as increased use of continuous casting. A more recent paper on CO2 emissions, focused on the steel industry in Japan, is that of Ariyama and Sato2. These authors report CO2 emissions of 182.4Mt from the Japanese steel, industry in 2003, down from 194.8Mt in 1990. The former represents 14% of the GHG emissions for Japan in 2003. Much of this emission is from ironmaking and the authors break these emissions down into"

Jan 1, 2008

By Bingyi Bai, Lifeng Yang, Yanling Guo, Jieyu Zhang, Guoding Gao

In terms of special resources with iron, niobium and rare earth coexisting in Baiyuneboite, the new smelting technology of ferrocolumbite was studied. Reduction experients for the Baiyuneboite and explores ore phase change of Baiyuneboite in the process of reduction was conducted with graphitic carbon as the main reducer and a temperature below 1000 ℃. Moreover, it studies the influence of reducer, roasting temperature and grind fineness on the reduction as well as focuses on the evolution course of iron phase. Through the analysis on in-situ XRD of the raw ore and carbon addition ore, it also develops microstructure change rules of Fe ore phase and ore phase of paragenetic elements for composite ore(Ca, Si, Nb, F) in the process of reduction roasting. In addition, the impacts of temperature on the reduction process are also discussed. With regard to minerals of different particle sizes, the thesis will explore their ore phase changes and microstructures after 10 hours’ reduction under 900 ℃.

Jan 1, 2015

By B. K. Chakrabarti

Modeling and a screening design of experiment (DOE) was performed with the process variables to identify the greatest effect of variables on the response quality in the dead burning of magnesite refractory in a rotary kiln. Among various interdependent variable factors, the design variables chosen were raw magnesite (RM) feed rate, kiln rotation time i,e, seconds per rotation(SPM) and burning zone temperature (BZT). The response variables chosen were exit gas temperature and density of dead burnt magnesite(DBM). ANOVA and normal plots were used to evaluate the effects.This work had enabled to correlate the BZT, RPM, RM feed with the exit gas temp and density of magnesite produced. The result opens up an avenue to look into the optimum region of operations within the ranges of variables considered in order to conserve energy and to minimize the exhaust gas temperature and to maximize the density of the DBM produced

Jan 1, 2015

By O. A. Ogunseitan

The contamination of aquatic ecosystems by mercury wastes is one of the most serious forms of environmental pollution associated with the metal mining and electrochemical industries. The transformation of inorganic mercury to alkylated species is a reversible bacterially-mediated process. The production of methylated mercury is of ?major public health and eco-toxicological concern because these forms of mercury are highly toxic ?and they bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms. We determined the response of the genetic determinants of mei:cury transrormation by Pseudomonas species (that predominate in contaminated soils and sediments), to the concentration and species? or available mercurfiations. By combining selective isolation and gene. ?probe techniques, the intrinsic genetic potential for mercury detoxification in a contaminated environment ?can be estimated. We determined that genetic units required for mericury volatilization (merA ?for mercuric reductase) are naturally amplified in response to mercury. Mercury-resistant bacteria that tolerate up to 100 ug Hg(Il)/ml of medium contain about 10 times more DNA fragments encoding merA than in unadapted bacteria. The exposure of bacteria to methylated.Hg (10 ug/ml lake water) produced increases (up to 10 times) in .genetic units, and higher levels of genetic expression (up to 50 times) per ml of lake water for the mercury reductase system, than on-induced lake water. The findings suggest that in environments where methylated Hg may accumulate as a result of bacterial activity, the reverse reaction which leads to the removal of mercury through volatilization from the system, may be achieved by inducing genetic ?amplification and expression of the mercuric reductase gene system.

Jan 1, 1991

By Arthur S. Klein, Hugh R. Lowry

"The Levitation Casting Process is a new continuous casting method that uses an electromagnetic levitation field, instead of a mold, to support and contain a column of solidifying metal. By counteracting gravitational forces and hydrostatic pressure on the metal column, this process eliminates friction and adhesion at the interface between the solidifying metal and the cooled walls of the casting chamber. The process inherently provides high casting speeds, excellent dimensional control and smooth, continuous emergence of solidified product from the top of the casting chamber.Of major importance is that the electromagnetic field produces an intense stirring of the liquid metal both before and during solidification. As a result of this stirring, the cast product has a homogeneous, equiaxed, fine grain structure generally suitable for immediate drawing or other forming operations without the need for hot rolling or other expensive additional processing.This paper reviews the fundamentals of the Levitation Casting Process, results obtained in casting various pure metals and alloys, and the production sized system at Lowell, MA, that uses this process. IntroductionThe Levitation Casting process was specifically developed to meet several requirements including:• Economic at low casting rates• Usable with pure metals and alloys• High, uniform product quality suitable for fine wire drawing or cold rolling into flat strip and tape• Easy cast product shape and size changes• Process inherently stable and easily automatedIn meeting these criteria it was also desired to retain the advantages of General Electric's well known Dip Forming continuous casting process; namely the inherent ""fail-safe"" properties of upward casting, solidifying metal by means other than pressure contact with a cooled mold, and use of a sealed furnace, casting chamber and cooling tower, filled with a protective atmosphere, to prevent oxidation of the molten metal or cast product."

Jan 1, 1988

By Rashmi Kumar, Amit Chatterjee, Sanjay Chandra

The practice of adding alloying materials to a molten bath is an integral feature of many pyrometallurgical operations. However, very little is known about the dissolution rate and solution mechanisms of solid additives in liquid melts. In foundries where large tonnages of liquid metals are handled, there is considerable interest in achieving optimum metal quality at minimum cost. This objective is influenced by several factors and the solution is often plant specific. Though the amount, sequence and mode of ferroalloy addition vary from plant to plant, various fundamental factors determine how quickly these additions dissolve in the bath. At the Ingot Mould Foundry (IMF) in TATA STEEL blast furnace hot metal is used to cast ingot moulds. The composition of hot metal desired for making ingot moulds demands addition of 20 kg each of Ferromanganese and Ferrosilicon in the 12 T transfer ladles into which the blast furnace metal is poured at the IMF. Owing to low temperature of hot metal at the IMF, casting commences immediately and complete dissolution of the ferroalloys is often not possible. To study this aspect in detail and to evolve suitable corrective measures, a mathematical model for the melting of a solid particle in a liquid metal bath was developed at TATA STEEL. The model was validated using the data available in literature. In keeping with published work, two separate dissolution periods were identified - a "shell period" and a "free dissolution period". The maximum thickness of the crust formed around a spherical particle shortly after immersion, can be obtained by using the mathematical model which has been developed. The model can also be used to investigate the effect of various parameters such as superheat of the bath, size of the particle, etc., on the maximum crust thickness and the particle melting time. On the basis of this study, the addition of ferromanganese and ferrosilicon was optimized at the IMF in Tata Steel.

Jan 1, 1996

By B. Q. Li, R. A. Mirshams

"A numerical algorithm is described for the simultaneous prediction of the thermomechanical behavior of the materials and microstructure evolption during metal forging. The numerical development is based on the finite element solution of the thermoviscoplastic deformation of metals coupled with the internal state variable model describing the microstructure evolution involving work hardening, recovery, recrystallization and grain size distribution. The finite element code for rigid viscoplastic deformation is developed based on the modification of the existing code for the thermal and fluid flow calculations. The code is tested against and compares well with the results reported in literature. The procedures for the integration of the · rnicrostructure model into the macro finite element model are described. Results are presented showing the characteristics of materials dynamics and mechanical deformation during simple metal forging processes.IntroductionIn industrial deformation processes such as hot rolling and forging, the workpiece undergoes both macroscopic plastic deformations and microstructural evolution. A computer model that allows to predict both materials dynamics and macroscopic deformation is obviously more useful for both fundamental understanding and deformation process optimization. For some industrial applications, especially those involving novel, light and high strength materials, such an integrated model is critical in that both materials and thermomechanical 'behavior during forging must be carefully controlled to obtain the products that meet the desired strength requirement [I]."

Jan 1, 2000

By Rolando Campos

Until 1970, the Caletones Smelter of CODELCO-CHILE, División El Teniente, operated under the conventional pyrometallurgical process used by most of copper smelters. The annual copper production varied around 165.000 tons. The failure in the commissioning of the "oxygen smelting" technology in Peirce- Smith converters (1970-1972), forced further introduction of transcendental changes in the Caletones smelter operating scheme. Implemented technological innovations were based on wide studies and research works performed by División El Teniente. This paper presents a summary of technological modifications introduced, their impact on production and energetic performances, and short and medium terms improvement plans.

Jan 1, 1993