scholarly journals Possibilities of Exploitation of Bauxite Residue from Alumina Production

10.5772/37644 ◽  
2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marin Schwarz ◽  
Vladimr Lalk
Keyword(s):  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Alumina Production

scholarly journals Preliminary Characterization of Three Metallurgical Bauxite Residue Samples

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 66
Author(s):  
Panagiotis Angelopoulos ◽  
Maria Georgiou ◽  
Paschalis Oustadakis ◽  
Maria Taxiarchou ◽  
Hakan Karadağ ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Morphological Observation ◽  
Critical Metals ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Preliminary Characterization ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
Extraction And Separation ◽  
Bulk Chemical

Bauxite Metallurgical Residue (BR) is a highly alkaline and very fine-grained by-product of the Bayer process for alumina production. Its huge global annual production has resulted in increasing accumulation of BR, causing deposition problems and serious environmental issues. RM contains oxides and salts of the main elements Fe, Al, Ca, Na, Si, Ti, and rare earths—REEs (Sc, Nd, Y, La, Ce, Ds)—many of which have been categorised by EU as critical metals (CMs). The valorisation of BR as a low-cost secondary raw material and metal resource could be a route for its reduction, introducing the waste into the economic cycle. REEScue constitutes a research project that aims to instigate the efficient exploitation of European bauxite residues, resulting from alumina production from Greece (MYTILINEOS SA), Turkey (ETI Aluminium), and Romania (ALUM SA), containing appreciable concentrations of scandium and REEs, through the development of a number of innovative extraction and separation technologies that can efficiently address the drawbacks of the existing solution. The consortium consists of three alumina producers from Greece (MYTILINEOS SA), Turkey (ETI Aluminium), and Romania (ALUM SA) and two academic partners from Greece (National Technical University of Athens) and Turkey (Necmettin Erbacan University). We present preliminary characterization results of three different BR samples that originate from the three aluminium industries, in respect of bulk chemical analysis (XRF, ICP), mineralogical investigation (XRD), and morphological observation through microscopy.

scholarly journals The Future of Scandium Recovery from Wastes

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 55
Author(s):  
Olga Chernoburova ◽  
Alexandre Chagnes
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
High Strength ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Industrial Wastes ◽  
Condensed State ◽  
No Production ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Critical Metal

With growing demand for renewable and clean energy technologies, the need in rare earth metals is increasing. Scandium, which is often considered a rare earth element (REE), is a critical metal mainly used in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) and high strength aluminum alloys used in aerospace and 3D printing applications. Furthermore, scandium supply is limited due to its scarcity and the high cost of its production in Asia and Russia while Europe has no production of scandium. Therefore, scandium extraction from alternative resources such as secondary resources located in Europe is of great concern. Within this context, this work provides a condensed state-of-art review of the issue of scandium recovery from industrial wastes. Priority was given to addressing the technological and economic challenges associated with the recovery of scandium from the said residues, with particular emphasis on the bauxite residue from alumina production, which represents nearly 5 million tons on dry basis per year in Europe.

scholarly journals The beginning and the end of the aluminium value chain

2020 ◽  
Vol 108 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 506
Author(s):  
Leiv Kolbeinsen
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Bayer Process ◽  
International Institute ◽  
Silicon Iron ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
The World ◽  
Scrap Recycling ◽  
Negative Environmental Impact ◽  
Electric Cables

Metallic aluminium does not naturally occur in nature, and it was largely unknown, virtually a mystery, until 200 years ago. The modern aluminium production using a hydrometallurgical refining process for making alumina followed by electrolysis of this mineral was first developed in 1886 and, in principle, the same technology is still used to this day. About 90% of alumina refineries in the world use the Bayer process for refining Bauxite ore. It is very efficient, but it can only be used on high quality bauxite with low content of admixtures, especially silicon. The Bayer process also generates a Bauxite Residue (BR), maybe better known as Red Mud (RM) which is a thick red-brown, high-basicity paste consisting of silicon, iron, aluminium, titanium and others. The International Institute of Aluminium estimates that since 1886 almost a billion tonnes of aluminium were produced around the world with three fourths of this amount still being in use today, of which about 35% is located in buildings and structures, 30% in electric cables and equipment and 30% in transport. Aluminium scrap is collected all over the world. In the home, it mostly consists of aluminium beverage cans. It is claimed that 1 ton of recycled empty beverage cans save 8 tons of bauxite, 4 kg of various fluorides and 14 kWh of electricity. Additionally, recycling aluminium significantly reduces the negative environmental impact of ever-expanding RM landfills. As the idea of environmental responsibility is gaining more and more traction, separate household scrap recycling is becoming more and more popular around the world. How challenges related to such activity can be met will be the main topic of this paper alongside discussing new developments for alumina production without RM generation.

scholarly journals Extraction of Valuable Elements from Red Mud with a Focus on Using Liquid Media—A Review

Recycling ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 38
Author(s):  
Dmitry Zinoveev ◽  
Liliya Pasechnik ◽  
Mikhail Fedotov ◽  
Valery Dyubanov ◽  
Pavel Grudinsky ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Red Mud ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Environmental Risks ◽  
Environmental Damage ◽  
Acid Solutions ◽  
Liquid Media ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Complex Methods ◽  
Biological Organisms

Bauxite residue, known as red mud, is a by-product of alumina production using the Bayer process. Currently, its total global storage amounts to over 4.6 billion tons, including about 600 million tons in Russia. The total global storage of red mud occupies large areas, leading to environmental damage and increasing environmental risks. Moreover, it contains a significant amount of sodium, which is easily soluble in subsoil water; therefore, a sustainable approach for comprehensive recycling of red mud is necessary. The bauxite residue contains valuable elements, such as aluminum, titanium, and scandium, which can be recovered using liquid media. In recent years, many methods of recovery of these elements from this waste have been proposed. This paper provides a critical review of hydrometallurgical, solvometallurgical, and complex methods for the recovery of valuable components from red mud, namely, aluminum, titanium, sodium, and rare and rare-earth elements. These methods include leaching using alkaline or acid solutions, ionic liquids, and biological organisms, in addition to red mud leaching solutions by extraction and sorption methods. Advantages and disadvantages of these processes in terms of their environmental impact are discussed.

Carbonization processing of bauxite residue as an alternative rare metal recovery process

2020 ◽  
pp. 56-63
Author(s):  
I. N. Pyagay ◽  
◽  
E. A. Kremcheev ◽  
L. A. Pasechnik ◽  
S. P. Yatsenko ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Red Mud ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Target Component ◽  
Acid Activation ◽  
Rare Metals ◽  
Residual Moisture ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Carbonization Process ◽  
Pregnant Solution

A prerequisite for commercial production of rare metals is a continuous effort given to developing knowledge-intensive recovery and refining techniques. Commonly known natural raw materials and conventional processing techniques, which are based on initial acid activation and recovery of minerals, as well as selective recovery of the target component (i.e. by sorption and extraction) cannot always ensure sufficient productivity or cost-effectiveness. This paper considers certain aspects of continued research in this area, which would require novel techniques. Such techniques should be based on new approaches allowing for the use of alternative raw materials to produce valuable rare metals on a cost-effective basis. It is demonstrated that red mud, i.e. waste material generated by bauxite industry and rich in scandium and other rare metals, can serve as such alternative source material. The paper describes the results of a study that looked at finding an optimum carbonization process for red mud that would ensure a consistent and predictable complexing process with regard to certain components. The paper also examines the environment in which soluble carbonate complexes can be stabilized and concentrated in the pregnant solution before the primary scandium-bearing concentrate can be recovered. The authors identified target parameters that determine enhanced filtration properties of carbonized slurry to ensure complete separation of the pregnant solution from the dehydrated (to the residual moisture content of 18%) carbonized residue. The paper highlights some positive factors of the carbonization process which enable a comprehensive utilization of alumina production waste. They include a long-term sequestration of carbon dioxide in the air and modified physical and chemical properties of red muds. This makes carbonized muds more compactable and thus more suitable for transportation and minimizes waste disposal hazards. The experimental research was carried out in conformance with the governmental assignments of the Institute of Solid State Chemistry of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Saint-Petersburg Mining University.

scholarly journals Progress on the Industrial Applications of Red Mud with a Focus on China

Minerals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 773
Author(s):  
Hua Zeng ◽  
Fei Lyu ◽  
Wei Sun ◽  
Hai Zhang ◽  
Li Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Red Mud ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Industrial Applications ◽  
Utilization Rate ◽  
Oil Well ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Industrial Utilization ◽  
Develop Technology ◽  
Well Cement

Red mud (RM), also called bauxite residue, is a strong alkaline industrial waste generated during the alumina production process. The annual production of RM in China is large, but its average utilization rate is low (only 4%). High generation and low consumption make the disposal of RM mainly by stockpiling, which has caused serious heavy metal pollution and radioactive contamination. In this paper, the various industrial utilization methods of RM in China during the past 60 years have been introduced. Moreover, some recent industrial progresses were referred. The results show that RM can be widely used in building materials, valuable metals extraction, and some novel utilization methods, such as silica-calcium fertilizer, inorganic polymer material and desulfurizer. Most of the industrial utilization methods of RM have been used until now and some successfully applied to other aluminum plants, providing some feasible routes for a large amount utilization of RM. Some industrial utilization methods (such as oil well cement and calcium silicon fertilizer) have not been used due to some problems that cannot be ignored, but it provided a lot of valuable experience and was helpful for the subsequent RM utilization. Moreover, some novel and feasible RM utilization methods were proposed and successfully industrialized, which showed that RM has a broader application prospect. Many actual practices showed that the best way to safely dispose of RM was to develop technology that could consume large amounts of RM or transform it into secondary resources, which may need more time and effort.

Applications of bauxite residue: A mini-review

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (10) ◽  
pp. 999-1012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ajay S Verma ◽  
Narendra M Suri ◽  
Suman Kant
Keyword(s):  
Automobile Industry ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Glass Ceramics ◽  
Large Area ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Mineralogical Characteristics ◽  
Valuable Metals ◽  
High Alkalinity ◽  
Bauxite Ore

Bauxite residue is the waste generated during alumina production by Bayer’s process. The amount of bauxite residue (40–50 wt%) generated depends on the quality of bauxite ore used for the processing. High alkalinity and high caustic content in bauxite residue causes environmental risk for fertile soil and ground water contamination. The caustic (NaOH) content in bauxite residue leads to human health risks, like dermal problems and irritation to eyes. Moreover, disposal of bauxite residue requires a large area; such problems can only be minimised by utilising bauxite residue effectively. For two decades, bauxite residue has been used as a binder in cement industries and filler/reinforcement for composite materials in the automobile industry. Valuable metals and oxides, like alumina (Al2O3), titanium oxide (TiO2) and iron oxide Fe2O3, were extracted from bauxite residue to reduce waste. Bauxite residue was utilised in construction and structure industries to make geopolymers. It was also used in the making of glass-ceramics and a coating material. Recently bauxite residue has been utilised to extract rare earth elements like scandium (Sc), yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), cerium (Ce), neodymium (Nd) and dysprosium (Dy). In this review article, the mineralogical characteristics of bauxite residue are summarised and current progresses on utilisation of bauxite residue in different fields of science and engineering are presented in detail.

scholarly journals Study of Microbial Cultures for the Bioleaching of Scandium from Alumina Industry By-Products

Metals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 951
Author(s):  
Kyriaki Kiskira ◽  
Theopisti Lymperopoulou ◽  
Lamprini-Areti Tsakanika ◽  
Charalampos Pavlopoulos ◽  
Konstantina Papadopoulou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Acids ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Secondary Source ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Microbial Cultures ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Valuable Metals ◽  
One Step ◽  
Alumina Industry ◽  
Environmentally Friendly Approach

The disposal of voluminous, highly alkaline, bauxite residue (BR), the industrial by-product of alumina production by the Bayer process, constitutes an intricate global environmental problem. BR, containing valuable metals such as rare-earth elements (REEs)—in particular, scandium (Sc)—can be used as a secondary source for REE extraction. The scope of this study was the investigation of bioleaching as an innovative and environmentally friendly approach for the extraction of Sc from BR. The bioleaching parameters were studied on Greek BR and experiments were performed using different microbial cultures and solid to liquid ratios (S/L). The maximum extraction of Sc was 42% using Acetobacter tropicalis in a one-step bioleaching process at 1% S/L. The main organic acids produced were acetic, oxalic, and citric. The bioleaching data indicated a probable synergistic effect of the different organic acids produced by microorganisms along with a more targeted leaching mechanism.

scholarly journals Hydrothermal Resource-saving Processes in Complex Processing of Bauxite and Red Mud

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liliya A. Pasechnik ◽  
Sergey P. Yatsenko ◽  
Vladimir M. Skachkov ◽  
Svetlana A. Bibanayeva
Keyword(s):  
Saturation Magnetization ◽  
Red Mud ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Bulk Sample ◽  
Resource Saving ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Bayer Liquor ◽  
Rare Elements ◽  
Cleaner Technology ◽  
Promising Source

The Bayer bauxite residue (red mud, RM) is environmentally hostile and hazardous to human health. Red mud can be viewed as an important and promising source of scandium, yttrium, zirconium and other elements rather than a solid waste. Due to a high content of iron in bauxites and especially in RM, the conversion of hematite into magnetite in Bayer liquor plays a key role in the exploration of a cleaner technology of alumina production. Thus, RM and raw bauxite were used for hydrothermal digestion in an original one-stage method of magnetite production during co-recovery of alumina. The yield of alumina reaches 80% from RM and more from bauxites during digestion with addition of lime and Fe(II) or Fe . The saturation magnetization of a bulk sample of magnetized bauxite is 40.5 emu/g, two orders of magnitude higher than that of a raw red mud sample. Moreover, magnetite containing a residue has a high crystallinity, which contributes to better deposition and magnetic separation in the development of an overall flowsheet for RM utilization. Keywords: Red mud, bauxite, hydrothermal treatment; enrichment, extraction, magnetization, hematite, magnetite, rare elements

scholarly journals Fundamental study of red mud based fluxes for desulphurization and dephosphorization of hot metal

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdolkarim Danaei
Keyword(s):  
Red Mud ◽  
Characteristic Temperature ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
Mineral Resources ◽  
Melting Behavior ◽  
Hot Metal ◽  
Fundamental Study ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Phosphorus Distribution ◽  
Microscopy Technique

Bauxite residue, also known as red mud, is generated during alumina production and is an abundant industrial waste material. Continuously increasing environmental concerns, together with scarcity of traditional mineral resources, have created a thrust to re-use the material. Red mud contains significant amounts of iron oxide and sodium hydroxide, hence a highly basic (pH > 10) slurry. In this research, the use of red mud as starting material for preparation of iron refining fluxes was evaluated. Red mud based fluxes and hot metal were equilibrated in graphite crucibles at the temperature range of 1300 ºC to 1400 °C and oxygen partial pressures range of 10-2 atm to 10-6 atm. It was found that the sulphide capacity increases with lime addition to a maximum 32 wt% CaO and decreases with increasing A12O3, TiO2 and SiO2 content in the fluxes saturated with lime. An iron foil equilibrium technique was employed to obtain precise measurements of phosphorus distribution between carbon saturated iron and red mud based fluxes. The measurements indicate that the equilibrium phosphorus distribution ratio initially increases with rise in FeO or CaO concentration of the fluxes and then drops. The melting behavior of the fluxes was also studied by visualizing the deformation of flux pellets as they were heated using a high temperature microscopy technique. Measurements of characteristic temperature for different fluxes indicated the melting property is a function of slag basicity. Therefore, optical basicity was used to establish a correlation between basicity of the red mud based fluxes and their melting properties.

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