Canadian plasma tech firm PyroGenesis Canada Inc. signed a pair of contracts with Aluminerie Alouette worth $2.7 million aimed at reducing the latter firm’s process residue streams for aluminium production.
One of the contracts is meant for advancing Aluminerie Alouette’s spent pot lining valorization technology, while the other is expected to develop a new valorization solution for excess electrolytic bath.
Part of the funding is derived from the Centre québécois de recherche et de développement de l’aluminium (“CQRDA”) which administers funding provided by the Ministry of the Economy, Innovation and Energy.
P. Peter Pascali, CEO of PyroGenesis, said in a press release that the contracts offer benefits to both parties.
“We are very proud to be partnering, once again, with Aluminerie Alouette, a company renowned for its environmentally friendly practices and which operates the largest aluminum smelter in the Americas. PyroGenesis’ technology and engineering capabilities will help re-use residues from aluminum production, including spent pot lining and electrolytic bath, thus helping Aluminerie Alouette advance its decarbonization strategy. These are the types of projects that underscore PyroGenesis’ strategy to position its processes to enable sustainable and environmentally responsible practices within the aluminum industry.”
PyroGenesis’s treatment for spent pot lining involves using plasma arc thermal treatment to transform the carbonaceous and refractory materials in spent pot lining into aluminium fluoride and synthesis gas. The aluminium fluoride may be used by Aluminerie Alouette in its production process.
Meanwhile, PyroGenesis’s plan for excess electrolytic bath involves utilizing plasma arc thermal treatment to produce aluminium fluoride. Excess electrolytic bath contains significant amounts of fluorine, making it both a toxic substance and a source of significant value if processed into aluminium fluoride.
Currently the parties are designing and fabricating the integrated thermal plasma furnace and gas purification system. Lab-scale tests and other experiments are underway as well. Next steps include testing of the system with an eye towards implementing these processes at a commercial scale.
