Effect of Various Parameters on Cell Temperature for Production of Aluminum

Current efficiency and thus economy of an electrolytic cell for the production of aluminium from alumina depends on the temperature inside the cell. Adequate care must be taken in order to maintain favorable temperature, and thus, efficiency of the cell. The paper presents an analysis of a set of 30 electrolytic cells. Temperature details of each cell and the various parameters like bath height, metal height, excess AlF3 and Al2O3 affecting the cell temperature were studied. Favorable temperature for safe functioning of the cell was 940-970 °C. Addition of AlF3 and increase in metal height were found to decrease the cell temperature, while increase in bath height resulted in an increase of cell temperature