Development of cost-efficient micro/nano alumina for refractory materials

Prosjektets mål er å kunne fremstille sfærisk mikro/nano alumina til en overkommelig pris som vil gjøre det attraktivt for benyttelse i flere industrielle applikasjoner. Basert på tidligere undersøkelser har prosjektet definert to ulike prosesskonsepter s om kan være aktuelle for fremstilling av produktet. Konseptene vil undersøkes fundamentalt ved matematisk modellering og verifisering ved eksperimentelle tester i en iterativ prosess. Prosjektet er i startfasen. Initiell modellering er gjort for begge ko nseptene, og eksperimentell test for et av konseptene har blitt utført med lovende resultat. Mengde produkt har hittil ikke blitt store nok til bruk i applikasjonstester.

The project intends to make affordable, spherical micro/nano alumina powder available for multiple industrial applications. Such a material has been requested by the refractory industry for a long time for high temperature applications (> 1500 °C). Today, micro/nano alumina is only available at a prohibitively high price (~25 EUR/kg). Preliminary investigations by Elkem have revealed that the intended process is not easy to establish. Initial screening has, however, shown two possible production principl es that should be further investigated. A fundamental approach has been chosen where the two processes shall be described by mathematical models, which shall be verified by experiments. This will be an iterative process between modelling and experimental testing. Provided successful initial testing, the most promising alternative will be followed up by further modelling, laboratory process design, and testing. The product will be characterized and sufficient amounts will be produced to verify the posit ive effect when the powder is applied as an additive in refractory mixes, first in laboratory tests and later in real refractory mixes. If successful, the new product will reduce the water content in refractory mixes, improve their flowability, and impro ve the strength of the refractory. Hence, the material will get a longer life time and/or thinner refractory layers can be applied in the steel industry. The amount of refractory needed per ton of produced steel will be substantially reduced. Development beyond the project will introduce the material to other applications and the material will have a significant impact on the future sustainable process industry.