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Aluminum Chloride Hexahydrate Crystallization by Hcl Gas Sparging.

Maysilles JH; Traut DE; Sawyer DL Jr.

MISSING :38 pages

10006320

The Bureau of Mines is conducting research on various technologies to recover alumina from domestic resources for feedstock to existing aluminum smelting capacity as a means to reduce dependence on imported bauxite, which represents 93 pct of U.S. aluminum requirements. One of the more promising technologies being investigated is the hydrochloric acid leaching of kaolinitic clay. In the hydrochloric acid leaching technology, alumina is recovered from iron-free aluminum chloride leach liquor and separated from impurity elements by sparging the liquor with hcl gas to crystallize aluminum chloride hexahydrate (ach). A large-scale crystallizer with a 336-gallon usable volume was constructed and operated to obtain engineering and design data for potential scale up and to demonstrate the ability of the technology to produce specification grade alumina. Test campaigns involving about 1,400 hours of operation were completed. Ach meeting all chemical purity requirements could not be produced by a single crystallization, but was produced by recrystallizing the product from the calcined kaolin clay leach liquor. Product crystals with a size distribution of more than 80 pct plus 100 mesh and 65 pct plus 65 mesh were made at a rate of 10 pounds of ach/(hr)(ft3). The zirconium tube heat exchanger used to maintain constant process temperature operated with an overall heat transfer coefficient of 420 to 500 btu/(hr)(ft2)(deg f).

19820101

IH; Report of Investigations

1982

RI 8590

BCEL;

MISSING