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12th AASTC in December to Highlight Smelting Technology

Queenstown, New Zealand© by Christopher Michel

The 12th Australasian Aluminium Smelting Technology Conference will be held in Queenstown, New Zealand on Dec 2-7, 2018. The conference is a unique opportunity to meet colleagues within the aluminum smelting industry, exchange concerns and share knowledge. As well as contributed papers, this conference is also famous for its in-depth examination and discussion of various topics that are of interest to the aluminum industry.

Conference Theme & Session Topics

The theme of the conference is Sustainable and Responsible Aluminum Production Growth. Similar to past Australasian conferences, the program will have a strong focus on discussion sessions led by industry specialists, and complimented by invited keynote presentations and appropriate technical contributions.

The planned session topics include:

  • Energy Management and Sustainability — flexible power usage, CO2 footprint, transient and permanent energy recovery for minimizing net wastage of energy, anode preheat (potential benefits and challenges), anode current monitoring (methods and benefits), minimizing voltage drop (anodic and cathodic), and incorporating sustainability into production chain
  • ​Environmental Management — minimizing anode carbon consumption (production, design, and operation practice), minimizing greenhouse gas co-evolution, fluoride emissions and dry scrubbing, and maximizing cell life to minimise solid waste accumulation
  • Automation and Cell Control — robotics and the future of work practices, sensible use of big data, and advances in cell diagnostics
  • Cell Design Issues and Impact on Performance — challenges with larger cell design, representative monitoring of conditions (managing spatial variations), improvements to alumina delivery and feeding system, optimizing cathode blocks and collector bars (shape, materials, and heat balance), and alternative materials and design
  • Materials Supply and Specifications — trends in quality and options for accommodating variations in petroleum cokes, options to overcome the shortage of coal tar pitch, and optimizing smelter grade alumina

In addition to the professional sessions, the conference will also provide a number of social events, including a traditional golf tournament at the start of the conference and a karaoke competition during a buffet dinner toward the end of the conference.

For more information visit: www.12aastc.com.

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