PROCEEDINGS - Industries of the Future - West Virginia - West ...

Industries of the Future — West Virginia
• Find uses for brazing-sheet scrap
• Identify various alloys for recycle (eddy current or x-ray fluorescents)
• Simulation of casting and extrusion for improved productivity
• Develop coal-based anodes and cathodes
• Develop “best-practices” model for management/automation system
• Improve anode-effect prediction methods
• Increase efficiency of scrubbing systems
• Identify critical equipment to reduce down time
• Develop secure sources, production, and application of coal to meet targets
• Reduce transmission losses on power lines
• Eliminate chlorine in casting degassing
• Investigate value-added materials for replacement of present applications at lower
costs
• Study cracking mechanisms of ingots
• Increase purity of Al 2O 3 feedstock
• Investigate “local” power generation
• Recover waste heat from pot rooms, etc.
• Attack SO 2 problem from pots
• Improve systems for process monitoring (on-line)
• Improve methods to measure current in tight places
• Improve coatings to eliminate H 2O stain
• Reclaim Al 2O 3 and reduce losses
• Model reduction process (dynamic)
• Model energy input/output
• Make inroads into river barge industry
• Understand bag house and scrubber operation
• Develop regional inventory and purchasing networks
• Reduce air and CO 2 reactions at anode surface
• Develop alternative extenders for coal-tar pitches
• Improve recovery of fabricated products
The group then identified the top six topics for future research efforts. These six ideas along with a
contact person for each are as follows:
1. The reduction in the cost and use of electricity especially in light of proposed
deregulation of the electric industry. Contact person: Muhammad Choudhry (WVU)
2 . Improved on-line process monitoring systems, particularly focused on increasing quality
and energy monitoring and minimization. Contact person: Jan Berkow (TMC
Technologies, Inc.)
3. The development of coal-based anodes and cathodes including cokes and binder
pitches. Contact persons: Ron McHenry (Koppers Industry) and John Zondlo (WVU)
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