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By Yasuhiro Konishi, Kazunari Mizoe

"This paper describes a new processing of ultrafine, magnetic ferrites from sulfuric acid pickling solution in steel industry. In the ferrite processing, the iron (II) in the pickling solution was first oxidized to iron (III) by using the acidophilic thennophile Acidianus brierleyi. The bio-oxidized pickling solution was treated with solvent extraction to separate the iron (III) into the organic solution of tertiary aliphatic monocarboxylic acid. After that, the carboxylate solutions of iron (III) and other metal (cobalt) were hydrolyzed and precipitated ultrafine particles of crystalline ferrites at l90°C and l. 3 MPa for 20 min.IntroductionHot-rolled steel sheet has always a layer of oxides on its surface. The oxide layer arises as scale in hot rolling processes in steel industry, and the scale consists of the three iron oxides such as hematite Fez03, magnetite Fep4, and wustite FeO. Pickling removes chemically the scale layer that adheres to the steel surface. For normal steels, pickling is carried out in 15-20% hydrochloric acid at 60-70°C or in 20-25% sulfuric acid at 95-100°C. When steel is pickled with sulfuric acid, the scale oxides dissolve to give iron (II) sulfate.Spent pickling solutions are hazardous wastes containing a large amount of dissolved iron (II) and sulfuric acid, e.g., about 40 kg/m3 of dissolved iron (II) at pH 0. In typical commercial processes, spent pickling solution is usually cooled evaporatively to 5°C, and then to 0°C to crystallize iron (II) sulfate as its heptahydrate. After the crystallization operation, the sulfuric acid can be reused in the pickling operation.In this paper we describes a new processing of ultrafine, magnetic ferrite from sulfuric acid pickling solution, in order to recover dissolved iron (II) in the form of a valuable product. In the ferrite processing, the iron (III) was first supplied by the microbial oxidation of iron (II) in the pickling solution, and then the biooxidized pickling solution was treated with solvent extraction to separate the iron (III) into the organic carboxylate solution. After that, the carboxylate solutions of iron (III) and other metal (cobalt) were precipitated crystalline ferrites under hydrothermal conditions."

Jan 1, 2000

By Ragnhild Aune

In fire refining of copper, the affinities of various impurity elements on dissolved oxygen is of great significance. Further, in the design of oxygen probes in liquid copper, the influence of solute interactions on the activity of oxygen need to be considered in order to evaluate the oxygen concentration in molten copper. The present paper presents a series of measurements of the activities of oxygen in liquid Cu-M-o alloys (where M stands for Mn, Zn, As, Se or Te) carned out by the present group employing the solid electrolyte galvanic cell technique. Extreme care was taken to control the oxygen potentials in the inert gas atmosphere, and to keep the oxygen levels very low in the molten metal. The oxygen content was determined by analysis of the samples taken out from the melt. The results obtained showed that Mn has a strong negative influence on the activity coefficient of oxygen in liquid copper. A similar, but less prominent effect was observed in the case of Zn. Arsenic had no influence on the activity of oxygen in Cu (liq.). Se and Te had slight negative effect on oxygen activities in copper at XQ >10-5, while at lower oxygen levels the interaction coefficients were found to be positive. The results obtained were compared with empirical models for the calculation of interaction coefficients available in literature.

Jan 1, 2003

By S. Sundarraj

The morphological transition between columnar and equiaxed structures is an important solidification phenomenon frequently observed in castings, especially complex parts with varying cross-section, The mechanical properties and the occurrence of defects such as hot tears are strongly dependent on the structure formed in the casting. Hence, it is important to understand the conditions leading to columnar or equiaxed structures. Although extensive work has been done in modeling solidification systems, almost all of the existing models are based on the assumption that the structure formed in the casting is either purely columnar or purely equiaxed. Prediction of the columnar-equiaxed transition (CET) requires a solidification model which accounts for the formation of both columnar and equiaxed structures, along with related microscopic and macroscopic solidification phenomena. In this paper a CET model is presented which: (i) takes account of both columnar and equiaxed structures, (ii) accounts for macroscopic heat transfer coupled with microscopic phenomena such as nucleation, growth and microsegregation, (iii) satisfies solute conservation, and (iv) is easy to implement in commercial finite element and finite difference software. The proposed model predictions of CET have been validated with available experimental results for a uni-directional solidification of an aluminum-copper alloy. A sensitivity analysis has also been carried out to determine the effects of various parameters on the CET model predictions. The model is being extended to other alloy systems and more complex geometries. This work will be published in due course.

Jan 1, 1996

By Malti Goel

"Ferrous and non-ferrous metals industries are source of both direct and indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Metal industry accounted for 29.7% of the total GHG emitted from the Indian industry sector in 2007. Aluminum is second largest contributor after steel. Indian Aluminum industry has been growing and is adopting several effective measures for better efficiencies through process change and waste utilization. Improvement in the energy efficiency can form the basis of monitoring reduction in emissions. Under the National Action Plan on Climate Change 2008, National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE) aims to upscale the efforts to unlock the market for energy efficiency improvement on a public private partnership (PPP) basis. For a transition to low carbon economy industry is undertaking voluntary measures through scientific and technological innovations both in upstream and downstream sectors. In this paper an attempt is made to overview recent developments in Indian Aluminum industry as well as summarize scientific & technological challenges and prospects.IntroductionAluminum plays a vital role in industrial development. It is a substitute for different type of materials ranging from wood to copper and steel. The aluminum industry has high energy consumption and high contribution to greenhouse gases from carbon dioxide and perfluorocarbons (PFCs) emissions. It is estimated that CO2 equivalent burden of aluminum industry is about 1% of total anthropogenic emissions. The anticipated world growth rate is 3.5% for aluminum demand. Through measures to reduce both direct and indirect CO2 emissions, electricity consumption was reduced from 25 kWh / kg of Aluminum in 1998 to 15 kWh / kg of Aluminum produced in 2008. It is targeted to further reduce it to 10.8 kWh. Aluminum industry is also responsible to about 60% of all PFC emissions. The PFC emissions are harmful to environment, accumulate in surrounding vegetation and contaminate. Efforts to reduce PFC emissions from aluminum industry started early and reduced to 0.5-1 kg / tonne in 1990 [1] from 12-15 kg / tonne in 1940. Since 1990s to 2000 it further reduced to 0.2 -0.4 kg / tonne as seen in Fig. 1. The Global Aluminum Sustainable Development Initiative (GADSI), targets perfluorocarbon (PFC) specific emissions reduction of 80% for 2010 relative to 1990."

Jan 1, 2011

By H. Bernier

The Noranda Inc., CCR Division, copper refinery located in Montreal-East, Québec, Canada, has expanded over the years to reach a capacity of 410,000 metric tons of cathode production per year. The expansion process resulted in nine, parallel, 200 m. long bays each equipped with its overhead cranes and manually operated washing machines. Anode scrap washing and piling was done manually. The mechanization of the tank house involved the elimination of 18 cells at one end of each of the bays in order to install transfer conveyors where anode scrap and cathode loads are deposited by the bay cranes. The cathode loads are brought by new transverse cranes to new machines where cathodes are washed, piled in predetermined bundle weights, check weighed, strapped then shipped in trucks or railroad cars. Suspension bars are automatically removed, stacked in magazines and sent back to the starting sheet machines. Anode scrap loads are brought to machines located near the anode furnaces where they are washed and piled in bundles for easy charging. The mechanization has eliminated numerous hazardous jobs and has realized a reduction of 0.2 man-hours/ton. After these modifications, the refinery production capacity now stands at 370,000 metric tons per year.

Jan 1, 1987

By Bien Ferrer

In most smelting operations, there is a strong incentive to improve safety, reduce downtime and extend the campaigns of furnaces and related equipment. An asset management strategy that is based on information, rather than simple throughput metrics and intuition, can be developed to improve uptime and unlock value currently unrealized at existing smelters. Advances in digital technology, including data analysis, modelling and monitoring for hot pyro-metallurgical vessels, make it possible to assess the current condition of an asset, as well as to make more informed projections about its future condition, using on-line and historical data. This would allow practices around asset management to be more proactive and less reactive, with the end-result of optimized uptime. ‘Digital Asset Management’ describes a concept in which digital technology is used to support an asset management strategy and accelerate decision-making by providing information on what, why and how an asset should be designed, operated or maintained. With the overall goals of effective resource utilization, optimized operations, capital efficiency and social acceptance, Smelter 4.0 is a program of holistic improvement and is underpinned by the effective use of data to drive decisions. This paper focuses on Asset Reliability, which is one of the improvement pillars of Smelter 4.0, and introduces a methodology that is aimed at closing the gap between recorded data and evidence-based decision-making through Digital Asset Management.

By P. D. Ferro

The direct oxide reduction (DOR) of plutonium oxide generates significant amounts of contaminated waste. This waste primarily consists of calcium oxide-saturated calcium chloride salt. This investigation explores the possibility of recycling the salt, by the electroreduction of the calcium oxide. Fused salt electrolysis of a simulated salt mix (CaC12 + ~10 wt. pct. CaO) is being carried out to electrowin calcium, and the process is being optimized in terms of the calcium solubility, cell temperature, current density and cell design to maximize the current efficiency. This work identifies the major concerns in the development of a process to electrowin calcium from this simulated salt mix.

Jan 1, 1992

By Joo Hyun Park, Soo Sang Park

The distribution behavior of Pb between molten copper and FetO-SiO2 (-CaO, Al2O3) slags was investigated at 1473 K (1200 oC) and p(O2)=10-10 atm in view of the reaction mechanism of Pb dissolution into the slag. The distribution ratio of Pb (LPb) decreases with increasing CaO content (~6 mass pct) irrespective of Fe/SiO2 ratio (1.4~1.7). However, the addition of alumina into a slag with Fe/SiO2=1.5 linearly decreases the LPb, whereas a minimum value is observed at about 4 mass pct Al2O3 at Fe/SiO2=1.3. The log LPb continuously decreases with increasing Fe/SiO2 ratio, and the addition of Al2O3 (5 to 15 mass pct) into the silica-saturated iron silicate slag (Fe/SiO2 < 1.0) yields the highest Pb distribution ratio. The log LPb linearly decreases by increasing the log (Fe3+/Fe2+) value. The Pb distribution ratio increases and the excess free energy of PbO decreases with increasing Cu2O content in the slag. However, from the viewpoint of copper loss into the slag, the silica-saturated system containing small amounts of alumina is strongly recommended to stabilize PbO in the slag phase at a low Cu2O content.

Jan 1, 2014

By Reinhard Bott

The Companhia Mineira de Metais (Brazil) runs a Zn-recovery plant in Tres Marias, federal state Minas Gerais, Brazil. The Zn-production is about 65,000 t/a, This corresponds to a concentrate throughput of about 255,000 t/a with a Zncontent of about 29.5 % at an output of 85 %, The plant is run continuously 360 d/a and 24 h/d, respectively. From this it can be concluded that: Input: approx. 650 - 700 t/d ore-concentrate and approx. 29 t/h ore-concentrate, respectively.

Jan 1, 1990

By W. C. Chang

Phases and magnetic evolutions of melt spun Nd9.5(Fe1-xCox)85.5B5 (x=0, 0.05, 0.1 and 0.15), (Nd1-yLay)9.5Fe85.5B5 (y=0, 0.0.5, 0.1; and 0.15) and (Nd0.95La0.05)9.5(Fe1-zCrz)81.5B9 (z=0, 0.033, 0.067 and 0.1) nanocomposites: have been investigated. It was found that a. dilute Co substitution for Fe, x=0:05-0:15, in Nd9.5(Fe1-xCox) 85.5B5 improved not only Curie temperature but also the remanence and maximum energy product. Partial substitution of La for Nd in(Nd1-yLay)9.5Fe85.5B5 may suppress the grain growth of the materials during thermal treatment. Exchange coupling between the Nd2Fe14B and a-Fe was found: to increase with increasing La content. A dilute La-substitution, y=O. 10, has proven to decrease the optimum wheel speed required for preparing melt spun ribbons with better magnetic properties; Furthermore; a slight substitution of La for Nd in (Nd0.95La0.05)9.5(Fe1-xCrx)81.5B9 nanocomposite reduced the crystallization temperature of the over-quenched ribbons and led to the formation of a multiple phases mixture. Nevertheless, a dilute Cr addition increases the Tg of (Nd0.95La0.05)9.5(Fe1zCrz)81.5B9 and also suppresses the formation of the undesired (Nd,La)2Fe23B3 and Fe3B phases: Cr was found to play an important role in grain smoothening or magnetic separation which consequently increased the Hc of Cr-containing materials.

Jan 1, 1997

By Antoine Allanore, Luis A. Ortiz, Donald R. Sadoway

"The steelmaking industry has drastically reduced its energy consumption in the last fifty years, and today’s technologies are considered to operate at their optimal efficiency with respect to energy needs. To cope with new constraints related to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, a change of paradigm is necessary. One of the promising technologies that could be deployed to help reach CO2 mitigation targets relies on the intensive use of electricity: molten oxide electrolysis (MOE). This paper presents the key process parameters that need to be tuned to address the practical needs for both high productivity in a steelmaking reactor and for an energy efficient process. Herein we show that contrary to common perception, the electrolysis process for ironmaking requires less energy than today’s chemical reduction route. Furthermore, we prove that most of the energy that must be provided to operate the electrolytic iron production cell is thermal energy which is readily generated by joule heating during electrolysis due to large currents being passed through the electrolyte. The energy consumption of the electrolysis cell is therefore shown to be highly dependent on the cell configuration and the chemistry of the electrolyte. As a consequence, the CO2-impact of the technology strongly depends on both the power production mode and the technological choices for design of the process, including cell configuration. Surprisingly enough, even when the electricity generation is not carbon-free, MOE still appears to be viable from the perspective of reducing GHG emissions providing sound reactor design considerations are made.IntroductionIn the context of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions mitigation, the steelmaking industry is considering several techniques that could sustain the efforts and progress achieved by this sector in the last decades [1]. A recent report [2] on potential routes for low-CO2 steelmaking highlighted for all techniques both the strong dependency of CO2 emissions on electric power production mode and the need for a decrease in energy consumption per tonne of steel. Incited to innovate with respect to this last criterion, the steel industry considers electrolysis to be a promising technological solution, and in particular the molten oxide electrolysis (MOE) process. This process conducts electrolysis in a mixture of oxides that dissolve the iron oxide feed, which by the action of electric current is decomposed into liquid iron and oxygen gas. The opportunity for reduction in energy consumption during steelmaking by MOE is commonly attributed to the “direct” pathway from iron oxide to liquid metal offered by the use of a molten oxide melt and operation at a temperature above the melting point of iron, ideally 1600°C, to provide enough superheat for tapping the molten iron product:"

Jan 1, 2011

By O. Ryosuke Suzuki

A new metallurgical process via sulfide is proposed: a sulfide is produced at a high temperature from its metallic oxide using gaseous CS2, and this sulfide is electrochemically reduced to its metallic state using molten salt. This combined process via sulfide is effective to obtain high purity of metallic powder, even if the metal in its oxide is strongly combined with oxygen. For example, it is not easy to reduce stable oxide TiO2, and only Ca can remove oxygen to form α-Ti. However, a fairly large amount of oxygen remains as Ti–O solid solution. Because the solubility of S in Ti is very small, this proposal was examined experimentally both on the conversion of TiO2 to TiS2 and on the successive reduction of TiS2 to Ti. TiO2 powder was exposed to CS2 gas flow at 1073 K, and the conversion to TiS2 was confirmed. TiS2 could be reduced to Ti powder either by calciothermic reduction or electrolysis in a CaCl2 melt. By Ca reduction at 1133 K in CaCl2 melt, sulfur concentration decreased to 0.03 mass%S when the amount greater than twice the stoichiometric calcium amount is added. By electrochemical reduction at 1173 K in CaCl2–CaS melt, S concentration significantly decreased to 0.01 mass% S when four times larger amount of electric charge was supplied.

By Corby Anderson

The efficient separation of palladium from the transition metals copper, nickel and iron can be effected by passing a leach solution of these metals through a column of the silica polyamine composite material, WP-1, patented by Purity Systems Inc (PSI), Assignee, University of Montana with exclusive license to PSI. The separation can be done at the intrinsic pH of a nitrogen species catalyzed (NSC) oxidative pressure leach solution (~0) and stripping of the palladium from the composite can be effected with hydrochloric acid/ammonium chloride solutions at 50oC. Batch capacities of the composite for palladium are ~ 1.8 mmol/g resin. The possibilities for isolating the metal from the strip are discussed. Given the proven longevity and rapid capture kinetics of the polyamine composites, this new approach should prove to be an economically viable alternative to the multi-step concentration processes practiced in the PGM industry to date.

Jan 1, 2003

By Sesha S. Srinivasan

Mechanochemical synthesis has been employed to prepare new light weight complex borohydrides, Zn(BH4)2. The thermal calorimetric and gravimetric analysis of these complex borohydrides shows the hydrogen decomposition temperature (Tdec) of about 100° C with theoretical capacity of ~8.0 wt%. This advanced materials based technology is considered to be suitable for attaining the US-DOE grand challenge technical targets. The powder x-ray diffraction analysis of the mechanically milled Zn(BH4)2 exhibits the presence of zinc borate and NaCl phase. The FTIR spectra of BH4-ion in NaBH4 has a characteristic band at 2290 cm-1,whereas in Zn(BH4)2, it occurs at ~2061 cm-1 (bridging B-H bonds) and ~2451 cm-1 (terminal B-H bonds) as well. The reversibility of hydrogen decomposition and recombination process is carried out by PCT measurements with multi-cycling procedure.

Jan 1, 2006

By Merete Tangstad, Lars Klemet Jakobsson

"Slag refining is a promising refining method for boron removal from silicon as a part of a metallurgical route for production of silicon for solar cells. There is, however, limited data on the distribution of impurity elements between silicon and different types of slags. In the present study, the distribution of boron and calcium between silicon and slag were determined at 1600 °C for calcium silicate slags with a CaO/SiC>2 ratio between 0.65 and 1.3. An almost horizontal linear trend was found for the distribution of boron between silicon and slag, and the borate capacity was found to follow the relationln(CB0, ) = 30.8 + 2.96-V (1)where V\s the CaO/SiCh mass ratio within the range of the experiments.IntroductionSolar grade silicon feedstock contributes significantly to the total cost and energy required to make crystalline silicon solar cells. A less expensive and less energy requiring method of solar grade silicon production is therefore needed in order to make crystalline silicon solar cells more viable as an energy source. Silicon is an abundant element and the manufacturing cost of solar grade silicon is therefore mainly determined by costs related to purification of metallurgical grade silicon. The Siemens process is the most common process today, but it is an expensive and highly energy requiring process that gives silicon with a higher purity than is needed for crystalline silicon solar cells. A cheaper and less energy requiring method for production of solar grade silicon can either be achieved by modifying the Siemens process or by using a new production method. Purification of metallurgical grade silicon through a metallurgical route is a promising method that is already in use industrially. It has however proven to be hard to lower the boron content to 0.3 mg/kg or less, which is the requirement for most p-type crystalline silicon solar cell manufacturers. Slag refining is seen as one of the most promising approaches that can be used to bring down the boron content to the required level, but there is not much data on how boron is distributed between silicon and binary calcium silicate slags [1-4]. The distribution of boron between silicon and calcium silicate slags at 1600 °C has been studied in this work, and the obtained data has been used to calculate the borate capacity of binary calcium silicate slags."

Jan 1, 2012

By John W. Lund

The Geo-Heat Center has been investigating the utilization of waste silica from the Cerro Prieto geothermal field for several years. The main objectives of the research were to com-bine silica with various additives to (1) form bricks for low cost housing, and (2) to produce a suitable road surfacing material. The various additives that were tested included hydrated lime, portland cement, plastic fibers, asphalt cement and emulsified asphalt. The silica-cement combination produced the strongest bricks and had the best weather resistance, whereas, the silica-lime combination produced the bricks with the lowest thermal conductivity and specific gravity density. The addition of plastic fibers to the silica-lime mixture improved both strength and weather resistance. The combination of asphalt and silica is not suitable as a road surfacing material, however, silica-cement appears promising.

Jan 1, 2006

By Cassandre Nowicki, Louis Gosselin, Carl Duchesne

"Quebec's primary aluminium production industry consumes roughly 39 TWh of electricity per year and is accountable for roughly 7 million tons of CO2 equivalent. By tapping only a small portion of waste heat and integrating it inside the production facility itself, we can significantly reduce GHG emissions and energy consumption. Although the amount of thermal waste can be adequately estimated by applying an energy balance to production processes, this provides very little information on the quality of waste heat and its potential for integration. A measure of exergy is required. Waste heat streams characterized by high exergy content may generally offer valuable incentives for recovery and integration. More generally, exergy values limit integration possibilities. An exergy analysis is provided for the aluminium electrolytic reduction process. This is meant to guide future heat recovery initiatives and energy efficiency measures.IntroductionCanada is one of the world leaders in primary aluminium production and 92% of its aluminium production capacities are located in the province of Quebec. In 2007, production capacity reached 2,786,000 tons in Quebec alone. Since it is estimated that 2.5 equivalent tons ofCO2 are released for each ton of aluminium produced in Canada, Quebec's aluminium production industry is accountable for roughly 7 million tons of CO2 yearly [1, 2]. Furthermore, with an average electricity consumption of 14 MWh per ton, primary aluminium accounts for 39 TWh of electricity per year in Quebec and this energy consumption represents 350 thousand tons ofCO2 equivalent [3, 4]. Natural gas consumption associated with primary aluminium production accounts for less than 1 TWh, but it represents an additional 350 thousand tons of CO2 equivalent [ 4].This work is meant to provide a tool to guide future efforts towards heat recovery and energy efficiency in the primary aluminium industry. Waste heat recovery and thermal integration can cut down both energy consumption costs and GHG emissions. In a primary aluminium production facility, waste heat represents roughly half of the energy input into the Hall-Heroult process. Tapping only a small portion of this energy could reduce natural gas and electricity consumption significantly. In order to evaluate how much of this energy is actually usable, we propose to apply an exergy analysis to individual transformation processes in an aluminium production facility, such that a potential to do work can be assigned to every waste heat flux. The approach will be described in the next section."

Jan 1, 2012

By T. Shimizu

In Japan, the emission standard of selenium in effluent was set at a maximum of20 mgll in Feb. &apos;94 for the first time, and it is scheduled to be further decreased to a maximum of 0.1 mg/I from Feb. &apos;97 due to tightening of the Water Pollution Prevention Act. Selenium (IV) and (VI) are generally found in effluent from precious metals refineries. Although selenium (IV) can be easily eliminated by some reducing agents, selenium (VI) is more difficult to be reduced. Therefore, many smelters are having difficulty in complying with the new emission standard. At Mitsubishi Materials&apos; Naoshima smelter, the behavior and the elimination of selenium in effluent have been extensively investigated. As a result, it was found that two strategies were particularly effective. One of them is improving the overall operation of precious metals refinery, that is, feeding uniformly the effluent to the waste-water treatment plant, reducing the effluent volume by recycling and recovering more selenium (IV) in the effluent. The other is eliminating selenium (VI) in the effluent from the precious metals refinery. It was found that selenium (VI) can be effectively reduced by using hydrazine under high? sulphuric acid concentration and high temperature conditions. By using these measures, it is considered that Naoshima Smelter will be able to comply with the new emission standard.

Jan 1, 1996

By Nourredine Menad, Christian Lucion, Maurice Save, Paul Hubaux, Solène Touzé

"The collection and treatment of WEEE has recently become mandatory in Europe and is now being organized. As the first step in current treatment processes is manual dismantling, we decided to investigate the development of an entirely automatic WEEE treatment procedure using physical separation techniques so as to limit manual sorting to the removal of hazardous components. Our approach was to test different wet and dry physical separation methods on bulk WEEE; i.e. gravity separation (jig and pneumatic table), electric conductivity separation (eddy currents), and particle shape separation (Lavodune classifier and vibrating helical conveyors). The results enabled us to determine a global treatment flowsheet of shredding, electromagnetic separation, eddy current separation, screening (2 mm), sink&float separation (d=1), and jigging. All the end products, except for the fine fraction, have possible recycling outlets. Batches of WEEE can thus be treated automatically once the problem of non-ferrous wires is resolved.IntroductionAccording to Ademe (French Agency for Environment and Energy Management; www.ademe.fr), France's annual production of WEEE is between 1.7 and 2.0 million tonnes. This waste, although of very varied composition, consists mainly of plastics and metals, and its collection and treatment has been mandatory in France since 2006; the modalities are gradually becoming organized. Existing treatment processes rely on a first step of manual dismantling which, though essential for removing dangerous components from the WEEE (e.g. batteries, cathode-ray tubes, ink cartridges, etc.), also includes separating out the decimetre-size plastic parts and metal parts. No fully automatic process has yet been developed for this type of waste. Moreover, the dismantling units in Europe are highly subsidized and call upon social workers. As this situation is not conceivable for the long-term, it is obviously important to develop entirely automatic WEEE-treatment technologies based on physical separation techniques. This would limit manual sorting to the removal of toxic components."

Jan 1, 2008

By Alistair Burrows

Situated in the oblast of East Kazakhstan, the Ust-Kamenogorsk Metallurgical Complex has spent the past twenty years renovating and remodelling itself as a modern polymetallic sulphide smelting facility, and a regional centre of excellence for custom smelting. Along the way there have been changes to the company structure, introduction of new technologies, investments in expanded capacity, environmental improvements, and addition of new metal products and by-products to the site’s repertoire. These changes have been gradual and incremental, but taken together they represent a significant contribution to placing Kazakhstan’s sulphide smelting industry on a strong foundation for enduring success in the international custom smelting market. In achieving these changes, a workforce that was historically isolated from much of the world now has recognised expertise, internationally competitive skills, and confidence to embrace the future. Further improvements in energy efficiency, environmental compliance and polymetallic processing capabilities are challenges that UKMC stands ready to face.