Search Documents

By F. Rivard, L. Rao, P. Carabin

"Advances in thermal plasma torches have resulted in this technology becoming a commercially viable solution for chemical and metallurgical processes. The main advantages of plasma are its ability to control process chemistry and to build small footprint reactors due to its high energy density and reactivity of the free radicals that are produced. This paper focuses on thermal plasmas produced by DC torches and their applications for waste treatment, production of high purity metals, and nanomaterials. Both transferred and non-transferred torches have been used as either a source of heat or as a reagent in various industrial processes. Retrofitting plasma torches in place of fuel oil burners lead to lower operating costs, capital cost and greenhouse gas emissions.INTRODUCTIONPlasma technology has become an ideal solution for many industrial chemical, metallurgical and mechanical processes [!]. Thermal plasma powered systems are typical used for their unique characteristics such as high energy densities, high temperatures, small installation sizes, rapid start-up and shutdown features, controlled process chemistry and use of electrical energy as a heating source resulting in decoupling the heat source from the oxygen flow rate [2]. Depending on the nature of the main plasma forming gas used, thermal plasma systems offer a high temperature heating source coupled with a highly reactive plasma plume rich in free radicals and ions which promote otherwise hard to drive chemical reactions, as well as high heat transfer rates."

Jan 1, 2013

By Chr. Kersch

This project further develops supercritlcal fluid extraction as an industrial soil remediation process. Heavy metals are removed from sand using CO2, The effect of the type of complexing ligands, pressure and water content on the extraction efficiency is investigated.

Jan 1, 1999

By D. Kennis

"Union Miniere Precious Metal's (UMPM's) Hoboken Business Unit has a long tradition in complex Pb-Cu metallurgy, focussing on the recovery of precious metals from various types of secondary and recyclable materials. Although the old flow sheet, based on a traditional sinter plant, blast furnace, and lead refinery process was a very complete flow-sheet with the capability of dealing with almost every impurity, the weaknesses became clear:1. old and costly technology,2. too many unit operations,3. too much internal recycling, and4. dependency on concentrates for the sintering process.To maintain the competitiveness of the Hoboken Business Unit, the project ""Smelter 2000"" was born. This project represents a breakthrough in metallurgical processes and technology. A modem smelting technology was chosen together with the development of a new process. A lead-copper process combining lead slag and blister copper production, carried out in an ISASMEL T vessel, was the key to simplifying the Hoboken flowsheet. ISASMEL T smelting technology was chosen for its flexibility towards feed characteristics and process parameters.The new smelter was commissioned at the end of 1997. Although there were a lot of problems due to the high degree of technical innovations in the process, the new smelter came to design capacity within 1 year after start-up. During this period, however, UMPM had, a very difficult time because of the extreme clear-cut nature of going from the old to the new flowsheet.After two and a half years of operation, the new flowsheet has proven to fit with the strategy of UMPM, focussing on treating secondary Pb-Cu materials and a broad range of recyclable feeds such as electronic scrap (E-scrap) and catalysts. Together with the new Precious Metals Plant, efficient logistics, recognised world class sampling practices and a customer-focussed commercial organisation, UMPM Hoboken can definitely be considered reborn."

Jan 1, 2000

By Yuanbo Zhang, Yingming Chen, Zijian Su, Bingbing Liu, Jun Chen

Iron, tin-bearing tailings is a kind of hazardous solid waste generated from cassiterite dressing operation. It is difficult to utilize the tailings by present mineral processing methods due to the complex dissemination characteristics. In this study, a process of gas-based magnetizing roasting followed by magnetic separation was studied for separating and recovering iron from the tailings. The effects of roasting and magnetic separation parameters on the recovery of iron were systematically investigated. The optimum parameters were proposed as follows: CO/(CO+CO2) content of 5%, roasting temperature of 850 C, roasting time of 60 min, grinding particle size of 90% less than 45 μm and magnetic field intensity of 800 Gs. Under these conditions, the magnetic concentrate containing 68.5% Fe and 0.06% Sn was achieved, which can be used as high-quality raw materials for direct reduction iron production.

Jan 1, 2016

By Laurentiu Nastac, Ruslan Mudryy

"This paper investigates the solidification of cast energetic materials. An active cooling and heating (ACH) technology and a mechanical vibration (MV) technology were applied to achieve unidirectional solidification during casting and to reduce cracks, gas pores, and shrinkage defects. The design parameters of these technologies were developed via Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling and thermal stress analysis. Concerning the ACH technology, the number of cooling/heating sections and their temperature profiles and time sequences were optimized based on the thermo-physical properties of the energetic material as well as the riser and mold diameter, thickness and type. The ACH technology will also decrease the thermal stresses during casting of energetic materials and therefore minimize the formation of potential cracks that may form during the casting process. The MV technology will help to remove air entrapped during pouring process and decrease the detrimental gap size between the projectile and the solidified energetic material.IntroductionCasting processes are widely employed in the manufacture of products with intricate shapes and, in particular, in applications where the material of the final product is sensitive to machining. It is especially useful in processing of energetic materials. The cooling conditions applied in the casting process can affect the quality of the final cast in terms of void formation, residual stress distributions, and mold separation. Substantial shrinkage is also observed due to the density change upon solidification [1-3]. Residual stresses are known to be closely related to the formation of cold cracks and hot tears during casting. The formation of a gap between the mold and the cast material is of critical importance due to its deleterious effect on heat removal and on crack formation. In the casting of energetic materials all these defects can significantly impair the detonation velocity, Gurney energy, and insensitive munitions characteristics of the formulation, and lead to catastrophic accidents in explosives handling [ 4-5]. Imposition of carefully controlled cooling condition is thus critical in optimizing the cast quality that could help avoid such destructive effects."

Jan 1, 2013

By Lucas Barbosa de Souza Martins, Felipe Perissé Duarte Lopes, Nathalia Carneiro Garcia Rosa, Lucas Lopes da Costa, Sergio Neves Monteiro, Rubén Jesus Sanchez Rodriguez

"The fibers extracted from the stem of the banana plant are relatively stronger and have been used as reinforcement of polymer matrix composites. In addition to quasi-static mechanical properties, there is a need to characterize the dynamic behavior of banana fiber composites subjected to thermal and mechanical constraints. In this work, the temperature variation of the dynamicmechanical parameters of polyester composites incorporated with up 30% in volume of banana fibers were investigated by DMA tests. The storage and loss moduli as well as the tangent delta were measured from 20 to 200°C in a TA Instrument operated with the flexural mode at 1 Hz. The results showed that the incorporation of banana fibers tends to increase the viscoelastic stiffness of the polyester matrix. It was also observed changes in the T g and the structure dumping capacity of the composites with increasing fraction of banana fibers.IntroductionNatural fibers with high amount of cellulose, also known as lignocellulosic fibers, have been used from primeval times by our civilization. In the last century, synthetic fibers such as nylon, carbon, aramid and glass fibers gained interest owing to superior strength and precise dimensional control. Natural fibers were then replaced by synthetics in many fields such as textiles and appliances. In the past decades, however, environmental issues drawn, once again, the attention to lignocellulosic fibers as possible substitute for intensive energy-consuming and long term polluting synthetics, specially the glass fiber [1]. In particular, research works have disclosed the potential advantages associated with the use of lignocellulosic fibers as the reinforcing phase in polymer composites [2-7]. Among the advantages it is worth mentioning the renewability, recyclability, biodegradability and the fact that natural fibers are neutral with respect to C02 emissions responsible for global warming. Moreover, as compared to synthetics, lignocellulosic fibers present lower density and cost as well as reduced wear caused to the processing equipment. On the other hand, in terms of composite reinforcement, hydrophilic lignocellulosic fibers present drawbacks such as weak adhesion to hydrophobic polymeric matrices in addition to dimensional limitations and non-uniform properties."

Jan 1, 2011

Acid mine drainage containing heavy metal ions is a large environmental problem facing the mining and mineral processing industry. The femte coprecipitation is a novel technique for removing heavy metal ions from waste water, recently applied to acid mine drainage. The fenite precipitation is usually performed at high temperature and therefore if applied in conventional manner, it becomes uneconomical to treat large quantities of acid mine drainage. In this paper the ferrite precipitation at ambient temperature-is &died. The possible mechanism of ferrite formation is discussed Experimental results from Noranda Tailing and Berkeley Pit water treated by this process are presented.

Jan 1, 1994

By Jim Sarvinis, Rory Hynes, Elizabet Cruz, Kerry McKenna, Maytinee Vatanakul

"Energy efficiency improvements achieved using heat recovery processes offer benefits to both the business case and environmental impact of metallurgical facilities. Global demand drives the development of lower and lower grade ore bodies. This trend results in higher energy intensity and consequently increased waste heat. Waste heat boilers and Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) processes are becoming cost competitive methods of utilizing this waste heat.This study analyzes heat recovery from available sources to produce power using, • High grade: waste heat boiler and steam turbine generator. This system will produce electricity, and/or process steam.• Low grade: ORC to produce electricity. The cycle is well adapted to low- moderate temperature heat sources.Processes used in metallurgical plants, such as hot exhaust streams, cooling and condensers could benefit from application of these systems.The study demonstrates:• The energy and cost saving potential of waste heat recovery technologies,• The environmental benefit.IntroductionIn recent decades, process intensification has resulted in increased productivity from unit operations such as kilns, fluidized bed reactors and smelting furnaces and decreased unit operating costs. In the coming decades, the industry’s challenge will be to continue this trend while at the same time decreasing the consumption of fossil fuels and further reducing the environmental impact of its processes.The U.S. Department of Energy reports that available waste heat sources in industry, which is approximately seven quadrillion BTU (~7,400 PJ/y), exceeds the current production of all renewable power sources combined. In Canada there are about 2,300 PJ/y of available waste heat, with the pulp and paper, metallurgy, chemical/petrochemical and oil refining industries the main players. Natural Resources Canada (NRCan)9 has estimated that about 25% of that heat could be recoverable using existing technologies, which in turn, represents a reduction of 27 Mt/y of Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, plus considerable water savings due to lower water cooling requirements and less fossil fuel consumption."

Jan 1, 2011

By Jilai Xue, Jun Zhu, Germain Kouma Ndong, Qiaochu Liu, Luxing Feng

"High-temperature oxidation and corrosion behaviors of Ni-Fe-Cr alloy as inert anodes for aluminum electrolysis have been studied in oxygen and molten electrolyte. The oxidation and corrosion scales on the anodes tested were analyzed using XRD and SEM-EDS. The oxidation rate is found to increase with increasing temperature from 700 °C to 950 °C, which can be approximately described by an inverse power rate function. The oxidation scales at 750 °C, 920 °C and 950 °C contain Cr-rich phase along with FeCr204 and (Feo.6Cro4)203. The corrosion extent of Ni-Fe-Cr anodes in electrolyte is dominated by temperature, which can make the scales thickness double from 700 °C to 750 °C or from 920 °C to 950 °C. Cr and Fe in the scales on the anode in electrolysis corrode preferentially into the molten electrolyte, while the nickel oxides could better sustain the corrosive environment in electrolysis. The results can be useful for developing inert anode material for potential application in aluminum electrolysis.IntroductionThe development of an inert anode for aluminum electrolysis has been a long term goal for aluminum industry. The present process for primary aluminum production involves the reduction of alumina with carbon anodes, forming carbon dioxide:"

Jan 1, 2013

By Niels Verbaan, Ralph Fitch, Charlotte Forstner, David Dreisinger

A process has been developed to extract gold, silver, indium, gallium, lead, copper, zinc, and other metals from a large resource using an oxidizing acid chloride heap leaching technology. The ore is crushed and/or ground to improve reactivity and then contacted with a solution containing NaCl-HCl-NaOCl. The value metals are leached into solution as chloro-complexes. The leachate is treated in a series of separation and recovery processes to produce separate saleable or disposable products. The paper will provide a summary of process development and application to a silver-indium ore from Bolivia. The possible application of the process to other ore types will be presented for discussion.

Jan 1, 2015

By A. Haxhiaj, Mitovica, E. Haxhiaj

"The paper discusses problems encountered during the release and possibility of using the thermal gas quantity Mathematical models are used to calculate the positive thermal effects of the gases and losses of thermal quantity with gases in the melting process of electric furnaces. The paper discusses in details the percentages of CO, CO2, H2S, O2 and the humidity in gases and their impact on the technological process in electrical furnaces in Drenas. The paper also confers the quantity and temperature of gases, the transfer of thermal quantity and dust with gases in the environment. The paper presents the percentage of humidity in the load which is added in electric furnace for melting and its impact on thermal and environmental balance in the technological process of melting in electric furnaces. Key words: Furnace, load, temperature, humidity, gases.IntroductionNickel easily reacts with gases in the atmosphere of the furnace in which the nickel ore is processed. Such reactions can explain challenges in producing high quality nickel. Reductive atmosphere with the surrounding gases composed of sulphurous anhydrite has harmful effects on the production of nickel. This is mainly due to solubility of hydrogen as well as nickel oxide in the melted metal. Nickel reacts with carbon monoxide and forms carbide of nickel and nickel oxide which dissolve in the melted metal. Carbon monoxide also dissolves in the melted metal. The presence of carbon dioxide and water vapor in the atmosphere of the furnace impact the decrease of acidity in reductive atmosphere of the furnace. The carbon dioxide reacts with nickel and forms nickel oxide and carbon monoxide. Water vapor reacts with nickel and forms hydrogen and nickel oxide that have negative impact on the structure of nickel and its alloys. In this paper the analytical and experimental analyses are proposed that lead to minimization of the negative effects of gasses and humidity in the melting process. As the practical example, the electrical furnace in Drenas is analyzed.1. The Load and Its CompositionThe basic function of the rotational furnace is drying and reductive roasting of the ore which directly is loaded into the electrical furnace for melting. It is important to mention that the degree of roasting and pre-reduction of iron-nickel oxides is reached if the roasting process of the load in the rotational furnace is done at the temperature of 900°C to 1000°C, with the reductive atmosphere in the furnace and with minimal amount of oxygen in the processing gas. The optimal process of roasting and pre-reduction of the load in its mass is around 13 wt%. With the removal of the humidity and the sterile pare of the ore, with the positive impacts in utilization of the thermal and electrical energy in the melting process in electrical furnaces."

Jan 1, 2013

By Jin Yu, Fang-Qiu Zu, Yun Xi, Li-Na Mao

"According to the behaviors of resistivity-temperature of Cu-Sb70 melt, which suggests a partly reversible temperature-induced liquid structure transitions (LST) could occur in this alloy, in this paper, we investigated the dependence of solidification on the liquid state. Both resistivity and temperature were measured to track solidification process. The results show that the nucleating undercooling of the melt which experienced the LST increased and the solidified time decreased. Meanwhile, the solidified microstructures refined evidently, with the microscopic pattern of primary phase changes from disordered pillarlike dendrites into homotaxic ones. Moreover, it is verified that the microstructures would be different if the reversible part of the LST was restrained. The new phenomena and results reflected in this paper suggest that grasping the rules of melt structure change with temperature before material processing will give help for controlling the solidification more effectively and finally resulting in more ideal microstructures.IntroductionThe structure and quality of liquid alloys have a direct and important influence on the structure, performance and quality of the solidified ones. In recent years with in-depth study of liquid structure, researchers have found that some liquid structure transitions (LST) could occur on dependence of the temperature or pressure [1-5]. And the article [6] reported that a pressure-induced reversible LST was found in liquid triphenyl phosphite, which further confirmed the authenticity of the existence of the LST. Furthermore, in our earlier studies of Sn-based melts using resistivity method, some abnormal structure changes induced by temperature have been found at hundreds of degrees above liqiudus, and these LSTs are partly reversible[7]. This phenomenon has been discussed and it is suggested that the reversible LST in Sn-based melts are related to the short-range ordering (SRO) structures of Sn, which are tetrahedron structure with covalent bonding. However, does this reversible LST exist in other melts too?"

Jan 1, 2012

By L. Béjar-Gómez

The aim of this research work is to study and characterize the precipitates in structural microalloyed steel by transmission electron microscopy and analysis by low resolution. Microalloyed steel with niobium was produced by casting in an electrical induction oven of 25 Kg capacity. Carbon content in steel was less than 0.1 % and 0.036% of niobium. Steel was processed thermomechanically; reheated to 1250 °C and hot rolled on a laboratory mill to a 13.0 mm thick plate with a finish rolling temperature of 900ºC and a thickness reduction of 80% . This work shows what precipitates are present in steel, the type of precipitates and their morphology. Analysis by transmission electron microscopy of low resolution was applied to obtain the chemical analysis of precipitates and the matrix. Spectroscopy of dispersive energy (STEM - EDS) was applied to obtain the element profile of precipitates. Particles of precipitates of NbC were found; with cubic morphology and size from 70 to 130 nm, circular morphology and size from 10 to 70 nm, polygonal morphology and size from 10 to 80 nm.

Jan 1, 2006

By S. Bagchi

The LaNi5-xMnx-hydrides have potential applications in cryocooling devices for non-mechanical method to compress hydrogen gas. Thermal aging behavior of LaNi5-xMnx-hydrides of compositions x=0.4 and x=1.5 has been investigated. The hydriding properties of the La1.02Ni4.6Mno.4 alloy do not change significantly after thermal aging at 453K for 260 hours. X-ray diffraction analyses of this aged alloy do not reveal the presence of any new phases but the Bragg peaks become broader. Line profile analyses show anisotropic microstrains with an average <e2>1/2 value of -5x103. Thermal aging of the other hydride, LaNi3.5Mn1.5 hydride, at 623K for 280 hours, showed significant disproportionation; the hydrogen capacity reduced significantly from an H/M value of 0.75 in the activated condition to -0.15 after aging. X-ray diffraction analyses showed disproportionated lanthanum dihydride, metallic Ni, and Mn phases. The Bragg peaks were very broad indicative of microstrains or small crystalline domains.

Jan 1, 1997

By Yang Tian-zu

The separation of precious metals from base metals containing in gold-antimony alloys by selective chlorination leaching under controlling potential was studied in this work. The effects of the consumption of hydrogen peroxide, the concentration of hydrochloric acid, the concentration of sulfuric acid, leaching temperature, leaching time and the liquid-solid ratio in hydrochloric acid system on the leaching efficiencies of the base metals have been investigated. The optimal leaching conditions of the gold-antimony alloys are as follows: hydrochloric acid concentration 4.0mol?L-1, sulfuric acid concentration 1.2mol?L-1, liquid-solid ratio L:S=7.5:1, the leaching temperature 80 0C, leaching time 2h, and the oxidation potential of the leaching system 400±20mV( vs SCE).The leaching efficiencies of copper, nickel and antimony are more than 99% and the gold leaching efficiency is about 0.042% under the above leaching conditions. The base metals containing in the gold-antimony alloy are separated from the precious metals thoroughly.

Jan 1, 2006

A novel, low-pressure adaptation of Praxair?s coherent jet technology utilizing CoJet lances was developed for application at Inco&apos;s Copper Cliff Smelter where oxygen is available in large tonnage quantities but only at relatively low supply pressures (< 193 kPa header pressure). The project objectives were to evaluate the effect of coherent jet technology on controlling oxygen lance accretion (?horn?) formation and to increase oxygen efficiency in the Inco Oxygen Top-Blowing Nitrogen Bottom Stirring (TBBS) MK Reactor used for converting nickel- contaminated chalcocite to semi-blister copper. This paper describes the development and subsequent implementation and testing of two CoJet lances in this application.

Jan 1, 2005

By M. Vondersaar, B. Bulnes

Quemetco, Inc.,. as a subsidiary of RSR Corporation, operates one of RSR's three secondary lead smelters in the City of Industry, California, next to a residential area within Los Angeles County. The Reverberatory furnace serves as the main reactor for melting lead grid and paste recovered by the battery crushing system. Feed material is introduced via screw conveyor after drying in an upstream rotary kiln. Slag produced by the Reverb flows directly to an electric arc furnace. Products from this one-pass furnace system consist of soft lead bullion from the reverb, hard lead bullion from the arc furnace, and a non-hazardous slag from the arc furnace. Furnace bullion is processed into finished product in a six-kettle refinery. An overview ·of plant operations is presented. Where applicable, references will be made to changes that have taken place during the last decade.

Jan 1, 2000

By Norberto Benitez, Christian Ludwig, Simona Regenspurg, Fabian Mendez

"Navarro is the main garbage dump in the city of Cali (Colombia). Operated since the late 1960s it collects about 1.600 tons of waste daily. The environment surrounding Navarro is highly contaminated and the pollutants released by the dump threaten human health in the adjoining neighborhoods. The goal of our project is to identify major pollutants released from the dump and their distribution in the surrounding ecosystem. In a first phase of the sampling and analysis program landfill leachate was collected and screened for heavy metals and for the most common persistent organic pollutants. This allowed us to identify the most relevant compounds on which we focused in a more detailed second phase investigation. These compounds were quantified in the vicinity of the landfill (groundwater, surface water, drinking water and soil) to get information on their mobility and possible pathways into the human body.IntroductionThe usual technique of waste disposal in most developing countries is by landfilling on not -, or not well controlled sites, where people live close by or even on the waste itself. A typical example for this practice is Navarro, the main garbage dump in the city of Cali (Colombia). Operated since the late 1960s it now consists of about 23 million tons of household and industrial waste. The dump is located on a wetland in the riverbed of the Cauca River, the main drinking water source for Cali. Two ponds of unknown permeability located next to the landfill collect a fraction of the waste leachate. During the rainy season, the ponds frequently overflow and drain into the soil (alluvial, loamy sediments) of surrounding sugar cane fields. The environment of Navarro is assumed to be highly polluted and there is evidence that it affects the health of nearby inhabitants. Specifically, the incidence of respiratory diseases was higher among vulnerable individuals (<3 and >50 years old) living in a <3 km perimeter of Navarro as compared with a control group (Solano et al., 2006). Further, a clustering of extremely rare congenital malformations (sirenomelias and cyclops) was observed in a small area during a short time period (<6 months) (Filigrana et al., 2008)."

Jan 1, 2008

By Masafumi Maeda

Our aim in this project was to develop a new copper refining technology utilizing pyrometallurgical treatment and a raw materials preparation technique. In the recycling process; raw material is not an idealized concentrate of copper sulfide but is composed of various types of scrap, industrial wastes such as sludge, ash and slag, and municipal wastes. Since we cannot expect oxidation heat in this process as in sulfide smelting, organic materials are viewed as an alternative energy source. Quality of the copper produced is targeted as 99.99% and an intermediate grade will also be marketable. To benefit the plant, rare metals and other nonferrous metals will also be recovered The overall system is described in this paper, specific topics outlined and preliminary research presented. Current Japanese technology for recycling copper based materials is briefly reviewed.

Jan 1, 1995

By Marco Olper

The CX-EW technology, developed by B.U.S Engitec, is improved introducing besides the battery paste electrowinning, the direct electrorefining of metallic lead (grids and poles) obtained from CX breakers. This new concept of electrorefming the antimonial lead scrap is aimed to the production of 99.99 lead and of slimes with high antimony content, avoiding gaseous emissions in melting lead scrap, and expensive and pollutant thermic refining operations. In this way, practically all lead content in the battery is available as 99.99 lead, hence with a wider market for the lead recyclers. This paper will describe the tests performed on a pilot plant scale with special reference to the relatively low energy consumption of the process.

Jan 1, 1993