Claims
- 1. In a process for treating spent potlining from the electrolytic smelting of aluminum, comprising:
- (i) heating spent potlining in a rotary kiln vessel by admixing spent potlining into a molten salt bath comprising sodium, aluminum, fluoride, calcium, and silicon salts in said rotary kiln vessel at a bath temperature in the range of about 1150.degree. C. to 1250.degree. C. while maintaining said salt bath in a pool at a depth of at least about 24 inches in said rotary kiln over the entire length of said rotary kiln vessel;
- (ii) admixing a solid oxygenating and gasifying compound into said pool of spent potlining in said salt bath, thereby oxygenating and gasifying spent potlining carbon to form carbon monoxide in said pool of spent potlining in said salt bath by decomposing said solid oxygenating and gasifying compound to form carbon dioxide gas, reacting and gasifying said carbon with said carbon dioxide gas in the said salt bath to form said carbon monoxide gas;
- (iii) burning said carbon monoxide gas above the molten salt bath surface;
- (iv) adding siliceous material to said bath; and
- (v) discharging and cooling a portion of said bath to form a display residue suitable for landfill;
- wherein the improvement for feeding spent potlining into said rotary kiln, comprises:
- (a) admixing spent potlining from the electrolytic smelting of aluminum with, solid oxygenating compound, and SiO.sub.2 sand to form a feed mixture of spent potlining, solid oxygenating compound, and SiO.sub.2 sand;
- (b) injecting said feed mixture into a rotary kiln;
- (c) controlling the feed volume and distribution pattern of said feed mixture injected into said rotary kiln by pneumatic slinger injection distribution onto an elliptical surface area of molten slag in said rotary kiln by adjusting the angle and velocity of said slinger injection distribution;
- (d) monitoring the temperature at a plurality of locations in a molten bath in said rotary kiln; and
- (e) adjusting and controlling the feed volume and distribution pattern of said feed mixture of spent potlining fed to said rotary kiln to maintain a temperature profile in said rotary kiln to produce a reduction in the level of carbon in the spent potlining wherein the spent potlining is heated to a carbon reducing set point of at least 1100.degree. C. while not exceeding a fluoride gas generation maximum temperature of 1250.degree. C.
- 2. A process as set forth in claim 1, further comprising comminuting the spent potlining prior to admixing with SiO.sub.2 sand to increase its surface area to mass ratio.
- 3. A process as set forth in claim 1, wherein said oxygenating compound comprises calcium carbonate.
- 4. A process as set forth in claim 3, further comprising blending said spent potlining, SiO.sub.2 sand, and calcium carbonate and maintaining a Si/Na molar ratio in the range of about 0.8-1.6 and a Ca/F.sub.2 molar ratio in the range of about 1.0-1.6 to control viscosity of said molten bath in the rotary kiln.
- 5. A process as set forth in claim 4, comprising monitoring the viscosity of said molten bath in the rotary kiln and adjusting and controlling said Si/Na molar ratio and said Ca/F.sub.2 molar ratio to control the viscosity of said molten bath in the rotary kiln in response to signals from said monitoring viscosity step.
- 6. In a process for treating spent potlining from the electrolytic smelting of aluminum, comprising:
- (a) heating spent potlining in a rotary kiln vessel by admixing spent potlining into a molten salt bath comprising sodium, aluminum, fluoride, calcium, and silicon salts in said rotary kiln vessel at a bath temperature in the range of about 1150.degree. C. to 1250.degree. C. while maintaining said salt bath in a pool at a depth of at least about 24 inches in said rotary kiln over the entire length of said rotary kiln vessel;
- (b) admixing a solid oxygenating and gasifying compound into said pool of spent potlining in said salt bath, thereby oxygenating and gasifying spent potlining carbon to form carbon monoxide in said pool of spent potlining in said salt bath by decomposing said solid oxygenating and gasifying compound to form carbon dioxide gas, reacting and gasifying said carbon with said carbon dioxide gas in the said salt bath to form said carbon monoxide gas;
- (c) burning said carbon monoxide gas above the molten salt bath surface;
- (d) adding siliceous material to said bath; and
- (e) discharging and cooling a portion of said bath to form a glassy residue suitable for landfill,
- wherein the improvement comprises:
- establishing said depth of said pool of at least about 24 inches throughout the length of said rotary kiln by providing a dam obstruction positioned at the discharge end of said rotary kiln.
- 7. A process as set forth in claim 6, further comprising providing burners aimed at the discharge dam and operating said burners to maintain salt bath in a molten condition at said discharge dam.
- 8. A process as set forth in claim 7, wherein said gasifying comprises gasifying the spent potlining with an oxygenating compound comprising calcium carbonate and mixing the spent potlining with SiO.sub.2 sand.
- 9. A process as set forth in claim 8, wherein said rotary kiln has a length to diameter (L/D) ratio greater than about 4.
- 10. A process for burning and mixing spent potlining with siliceous material as set forth in claim 9, wherein said rotary kiln has an L/D ratio greater than about 5.
Parent Case Info
This application is a division of application Ser. No. 08/084,896 filed Jun. 29, 1993.
US Referenced Citations (36)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
1274999 |
Dec 1986 |
SUX |
Divisions (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
084896 |
Jun 1993 |
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