1. Startup and Tuning of Material Distribution System at Aluminium Smelter in Qatar
Mr. Julian Sowah – Qatalum
Mr. Vivek Shroff – Qatalum
Mr. Santosh Kumar – Qatalum
Mr. Arne Hilck - Claudius Peters
Mr. Jan Paepcke - Claudius Peters

2. Content of Today
Introduction of Claudius Peters
Aerated Distribution System for Potroom Feeding (ADS) – Basics
Claudius Peters - Outlook for 2015
Introduction of Qatalum
Startup and Tuning - Results
Summary and Outlook 2015

3. ADS: Results of Qatalum Smelter
Outlook TMS 2013 for 2014
FLUIDCON: Attrition factor testing
ADS: Results of Qatalum Smelter
AS – System: Commissioning of Boguchany and Results

4. Introduction – Claudius Peters
Worldwide acting Engineering Company (born 1906)
Main Business Areas: Aluminium, Cement, Steel, Gypsum, Power
More than 550 employees worldwide
Deliverer for AIRBUS Industries
Turnover 150 Mio €
Offices in Germany, USA, France, China, Brazil UK, Spain, Italy, Romania, Singapore, India

5. The ADS Principle

6. The ADS Principle

7. The ADS Principle

8. Introduction - Who are we?
Qatalum

9. Introduction Qatalum: Our Milestones
2004
2011
December
Heads of agreement
2009
March
Project completion
​September 21
Qatalum achieved full production of 585,000 tonnes
2007
2010
April
Power from grid
October
First raw material ship
November
Commissioning of cast house
December 18
First Metal from potline
First Export of PFA
January
Site preparation start-up
July
Final approval
November
Construction commences
January
First EI Export
Fuel gas for power plant gas turbines
Initial power available from power plant
2006
March
Joint venture agreement and approval of feasibility
October
Investment decision
​Qatalum is an equal joint venture between Qatar Petroleum and Hydro Aluminium of Norway and produces 585,000 tons of high-quality primary aluminium products per annum from twin 1.2 kilo​metre potlines
Current production capacity exceeds 620,000 tonnes of aluminium

10. 39 Nationalities at Qatalum
Qatalum: About Us
357 7 2 6 50 3 16 15 1 98 30 11 9 21
172 47
239 34
39 Nationalities at Qatalum 5

11. Reduction (Potlines) - Qatalum
Designed for low specific energy consumption, high labour productivity, low emissions, no SPL landfill
1.2 km
x 704 pots
314 kA
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12. Qatalum
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13. Aerated Distribution System in operation since 2009

14. Qatalum Pot Line Design Parameters
Design Parameter (704 pots)
Name Template Capacity
Amperage
Number of Pots
Design
585,000 t/y
300 kA
704
Present Day
+ 605,000 t/y
314 kA
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15. Qatalum ADS Design Parameters Distribution Air slide
ADS desgin parameters
Distribution Air slide
Inclination
Cell Airslide
Design
50 t/h
1 °
10 [t/h]
0.5 °
Present Day
100 t/h
10 t/h
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16. CHALLENGES Constant Flow into System with varying Material Properties
Silo fluidisation
Silo aeration timing
Material overflow from Silo to Coarse Particle Separator (CPS)
Coarse Particle Separator (CPS) Accessibility & Performance
Air supply nozzles (blockages)
De-aeration of transport system
Fine tuning of operational settings

17. Modifications carried out
Modification CPS for accessibility
Repositioning of Level switches
Conversion of level switches to adjustable types.
Installation of additional manual valves on 750t secondary alumina silo
Filling time optimization
Provision of continous venting (2015)

18. Coarse Particle Separator
Improvements
Baffle plates for flow control
Vibrator design
Silo fluidisation adjustment
Aeration nozzle size repositioning
Easier access for daily inspections

19. Coarse Particle Separator- Improvement Results
Month
No. of CPS overflows
Jul-12 26
Aug-12 32
Sep-12 34
Oct-12 28
Nov-12 29
Dec-12 30
Jan-13 11
Feb-13 5
Mar-13 2
Apr-13
May-13 4
Jun-13
Jul-13
Aug-13
Sep-13
Oct-13 13
Nov-13 3
Dec-13

20. Other Modifications Carried Out
Modification of CPS for accessibility
Repositioning of Level switches on airslides
Installation of adjustable level switches
Additional manual valves on alumina silo 20

21. Verification of Improvements
How the improvements were measured
Alumina spills on CPS
Maintenance cost
- No significant wear can be seen on the airslide fabric
- Spare / Wear parts consumption is extremely low
Timing of aeration system
(Small increaments of 10s resulted in more consistent filling)

22. ADS – Results & Advantages
NO RISK for Potline – Easy catch up after stoppage.
Easy maintenance. Low manpower.
2013 Maintenance cost = USD/ton of alumina
Operational activities: Cleaning of CPS and visual inspections!
System availibility is more than 98%;
The buffer silosensures constant material supply to pots.
Dust free system (environmentally friendly)
No accumulation of coarse particles in the system, as material is screened out in the beginning.
Little variations in alumina grain size distribution during conveying
Always material supply for Potline – The System is able to catch up easily after several hours of stoppage of ADS-system,together with the buffer silos, this ensures constant material supply always.
Easy maintenance. Low manpower.
Activities: Only Cleaning of CPS and visual inspections!
2013 Maintenance cost = USD/ton of alumina
Dust free system (environmentally friendly)
No accumulation of coarse particles in the system, as material is screened out in the beginning.
No significant variations in alumina grain size distribution during conveying

23. Variations in alumina grain size distribution during conveying
Longest Conveying distance = 280m
Samples taken from various points starting from the silo outlet through to the farthest pot (280m away).

24. Particle Size Distribution/ Check
Ø 8,1% < 45µm
Ø 8,21% < 45µm
AH: New table, Added the averages of ADS PSD-evaluation, Result: At the beginning of the branch is nearly the same PSD compared to the end pots of each branch.
Ø 8,3% < 45µm
Ø 7,9% < 45µm

25. No Effect on PSD and Anode effect distribution
Material
AH: new table, this shows the qualitative distribution of anode effects within a two-branch-system. If there would be a difference in particle size distribution, there would be an effect on anode effects as well. But this effect can not be seen, therefore the conclusion is: There is no negative effect from the distriution system on the PSD.
Number of AE

26. ADS Maintenance
No significant wear has been seen on the airslide fabric since the plant startup
Spare / Wear parts consumption is extremely low

27. No Scaling No build-up of scales inside Airslides
No Coarse particle accumulation.
AH: New slide showing the non existing scaling

28. Lessons Learned Material Flow from silo
Control of alumina flow out of silo / inlet box by optimization of aeration air.
Coarse particle seperator upgrade
Quality of aeration air/Aeration nozzles
Flushing of the air system before start-up is helpful
Selection of air filtration system for compressed air
Stability of deaeration pressure is crucial for the system operation

29. Thank you for your attention