Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved]
Background This work was carried out within the framework of the SisAl Pilot project, which is devoted to the environmentally friendly production of silicon. This new method relies on the aluminothermic reduction of quartz in slag, offering a more sustainable alternative to the traditional reduction...
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F1000 Research Ltd
2025-01-01
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| Online Access: | https://open-research-europe.ec.europa.eu/articles/4-249/v2 |
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| author | Óscar Crego Javier Bullón Dolores Gómez José Luis Ferrín Luis Javier Pérez-Pérez Iván Martínez |
| author_facet | Óscar Crego Javier Bullón Dolores Gómez José Luis Ferrín Luis Javier Pérez-Pérez Iván Martínez |
| author_sort | Óscar Crego |
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| description | Background This work was carried out within the framework of the SisAl Pilot project, which is devoted to the environmentally friendly production of silicon. This new method relies on the aluminothermic reduction of quartz in slag, offering a more sustainable alternative to the traditional reduction of silica with carbon in submerged arc furnaces. Methods The process takes place in a rotary kiln producing silicon (Si) and alumina slag (actually, a CaO – Al2O3 slag), which must be separated at the end to extract the silicon. This separation process is analyzed through mathematical modelling and numerical simulation, as it is of industrial interest to know how much time it takes for Si and CaO – Al2O3 slag to separate once the process has ended. Generally, a multiphase flow model is used to estimate the separation time of the two components once aluminothermic reduction has ended. Results Several scenarios are considered for the numerical simulation of the separation time, namely different initial configurations and material properties of both fluids are covered. Moreover, the separation times obtained with two distinct multiphase flow models -VOF (volume of fluid) and Eulerian- are compared. Conclusions The separation times resulting from simulations using the multiphase Eulerian model are more realistic compared to those from the VOF model, which clearly tends to underestimate separation times. Furthermore, apart from the selected multiphase flow model, the density difference between silicon and alumina slag plays a critical role in determining the separation time. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9e591e63079640fc89c4e042b6850b0b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2732-5121 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | F1000 Research Ltd |
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| series | Open Research Europe |
| spelling | doaj-art-9e591e63079640fc89c4e042b6850b0b2025-01-11T01:00:00ZengF1000 Research LtdOpen Research Europe2732-51212025-01-01420838Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved]Óscar Crego0Javier Bullón1Dolores Gómez2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9722-311XJosé Luis Ferrín3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4795-0455Luis Javier Pérez-Pérez4Iván Martínez5https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9983-2496Centro de Investigación e Tecnoloxía Matemática de Galicia, Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, 15782, SpainSilBuCam, A Coruña, SpainCentro de Investigación e Tecnoloxía Matemática de Galicia, Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, 15782, SpainCentro de Investigación e Tecnoloxía Matemática de Galicia, Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, 15782, SpainUniversidad Politecnica de Madrid Departamento de Ingenieria Geologica y Minera, Madrid, Community of Madrid, 28003, SpainCentro de Investigación e Tecnoloxía Matemática de Galicia, Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, 15782, SpainBackground This work was carried out within the framework of the SisAl Pilot project, which is devoted to the environmentally friendly production of silicon. This new method relies on the aluminothermic reduction of quartz in slag, offering a more sustainable alternative to the traditional reduction of silica with carbon in submerged arc furnaces. Methods The process takes place in a rotary kiln producing silicon (Si) and alumina slag (actually, a CaO – Al2O3 slag), which must be separated at the end to extract the silicon. This separation process is analyzed through mathematical modelling and numerical simulation, as it is of industrial interest to know how much time it takes for Si and CaO – Al2O3 slag to separate once the process has ended. Generally, a multiphase flow model is used to estimate the separation time of the two components once aluminothermic reduction has ended. Results Several scenarios are considered for the numerical simulation of the separation time, namely different initial configurations and material properties of both fluids are covered. Moreover, the separation times obtained with two distinct multiphase flow models -VOF (volume of fluid) and Eulerian- are compared. Conclusions The separation times resulting from simulations using the multiphase Eulerian model are more realistic compared to those from the VOF model, which clearly tends to underestimate separation times. Furthermore, apart from the selected multiphase flow model, the density difference between silicon and alumina slag plays a critical role in determining the separation time.https://open-research-europe.ec.europa.eu/articles/4-249/v2mathematical modelling numerical simulation rotary kiln aluminothermic reduction multiphase flow separation timeeng |
| spellingShingle | Óscar Crego Javier Bullón Dolores Gómez José Luis Ferrín Luis Javier Pérez-Pérez Iván Martínez Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved] Open Research Europe mathematical modelling numerical simulation rotary kiln aluminothermic reduction multiphase flow separation time eng |
| title | Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved] |
| title_full | Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved] |
| title_fullStr | Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved] |
| title_full_unstemmed | Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved] |
| title_short | Separation Time of Aluminothermic Reduction Products for Sustainable Silicon Production [version 2; peer review: 2 approved] |
| title_sort | separation time of aluminothermic reduction products for sustainable silicon production version 2 peer review 2 approved |
| topic | mathematical modelling numerical simulation rotary kiln aluminothermic reduction multiphase flow separation time eng |
| url | https://open-research-europe.ec.europa.eu/articles/4-249/v2 |
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