Extraction of Aluminum
ALUMINIUM
A soft, silvery-white, corrosion-resistant metal. It is the most abundant
metal in the earth’s crust as it makes up 8% of the crust and it is the third
most abundant element after oxygen and silicon.
Bauxite ore (Al2O3.xH2O) is the major source of aluminium till date
which is a mixture of hydrated aluminium oxide.
Cryolite: Aluminium can also be recovered from cryolite (Na3AlF6) and
alunite. It is also found in gemstones such as garnet, topaz and
chrysoberyl. The chemical symbol of this metal is Al.
Ores of Aluminium
Aluminium is a highly reactive metal, belonging to the IIIA group of the periodic
table. In nature, aluminium is found in the form of its oxide in its ores. The
important ores of aluminium are
Bauxite – Al2O3.2H2O
Corundum – Al2O3
Cryolite – Na3AlF6
Metallurgy of Aluminium
Aluminium is mostly extracted from its bauxite ore. Dressing of ore: The ore is
crushed and pulverized.
Concentration of ore
The bauxite ore contains ferric oxide and silica as impurities. It is first
concentrated by gravity separation of ferric oxide impurities by the process of
magnetic separation. The ore is then concentrated by chemical process.
Bauxite is the name given to aluminium ore. To generate aluminium oxide,
bauxite is purified, a white powder form which aluminium can be
extracted. Aluminium oxide has a very high melting point of more than 2000 ° C
so melting it would be costly. Aluminium oxide in water does not dissolve, but in
molten cryolite, it dissolves.
Bayer’s Process Hall-Heroult Process
In this process, aluminium ore is The Hall-Heroult process is widely used in the
treated with concentrated extraction of aluminium. In Hall-Heroults process,
sodium hydroxide. Soluble pure Al2O3 is mixed with CaF2 or Na3AlF6. This
sodium aluminate is formed results in lowering of the melting point of the
mixture and increases its ability to conduct
which is filtered off. The filtrate
electricity. A steel vessel with the lining of
on heating with water gives carbon and graphite rods is used.
aluminium hydroxide which The carbon lining acts as cathode and graphite act
gives alumina on strong heating. as an anode. When electricity is passed through
the electrolytic cell which consists of carbon
electrodes oxygen is formed at the anode. This
oxygen formed reacts with the carbon of the
anode to form carbon monoxide and carbon
dioxide. In this method of production of aluminium
for every 1 kg of Al produced, approximately 0.5 Kg
of carbon anode is burnt
1. BAYER’S PROCESS
2. ELECTROLYTIC REDUCTION OF ALUMINA
Aluminium Uses
The list of uses of aluminium is given below.
Aluminium is used in a wide range of applications in the field of transport,
construction, etc.
Aluminium foils are used in the food industries for wrapping food.
The dust of this metal is used in paints.
It is used in the extraction of manganese and chromium from its oxides.
As it is a soft metal and it can be moulded into any shape it is used in the
manufacturing of storage cans.
Aluminium after iron is the most commonly used metal.
It is mostly used with another metal in an alloy, meaning that it is blended
with another metal to create another compound with some desirable
characteristics-like stainless steel.
Extraction of Magnesium
Pidgeon Process
2MgO.CaO+ FeSi 2Mg+CaO.SiO2+Fe
EXTRACTION OF TIN
cassiterite
PROCESS OF EXTRACTION
In the conventional reverberatory furnace process, cassiterite
(SnO2) is reduced to tin metal by heating with carbon at 1200–
1300°C (2192–2372°F). Tin concentrate is smelted to resmelted
slag for additional tin recovery. The furnace charge consists of
tin ore (cassiterite), a carbon reducing agent (coke), and
limestone and silica fluxes. The quantity of coke and flux is
carefully adjusted so as to produce an almost neutral slag (ie,
acid-to-base ratio is 1). The smelting takes 10–12 h.
In the second stage, additional flux, limestone, coal, and
iron scrap that facilitates the reduction of the tin oxide present
in the slag are used. The second slag, which contains a much
lower amount of tin, is also smelted to recover its tin content.
Finally, the molten slag is tapped into a settler from which the
slag overflows. After tapping from the furnace the molten slag is
quenched, granulated in water, and solidifies into glass-like
material.
STEPS
The main ore of tin is cassiterite which contains tin(IV) oxide, SnO2. The following
summarises the steps in the extraction of tin.
The ore is first crushed, grounded and washed.
Then, the ore is concentrated by mixing it with oil and water. In this flotation method,
the tin minerals, which are less dense, are trapped in the floating foam. The
impurities such as soil and sand, which are denser, sink to the bottom.
The concentrated ore is then roasted in the air. This converts the sulphide of tin to
oxide. At the same time, impurities such as sulphur and oil are burnt off.
Similar to iron, the reduction of tin(IV) oxide takes place in the blast furnace by
carbon monoxide and coke.
