Refining of Primary Aluminum from Vanadium

Abstract

The paper investigates the technology of refining primary aluminum from vanadium impurities, based on flux treatment with boron-containing fluxes. In the Pavlodar region of the Republic of Kazakhstan, on the basis of local enterprises, the production of primary aluminum and products based on local raw materials is developing. The main problem in the production of primary aluminum on the basis of JSC “Kazakhstan Electrolysis Plant” is the presence of undesirable vanadium impurities, which pass into metal during electrolysis from baked anodes based on calcined coke (vanadium content up to 800 ppm) of the local enterprise LLP UPNK-PV (Pavlodar, Kazakhstan). The authors investigated the process of ladle refining of aluminum from vanadium using the Al-B (3% B) alloy. Laboratory and industrial tests have shown a decrease in the vanadium content by an average of 78% in the bulk of the metal, with an increase in its content in volume up to 5-10% of the ladle capacity. It was found that mixing leads to a certain averaging of the vanadium content in the ladle volume.