Rio Tinto Alcan developing new generation of its AP smelting technology

摘要

Rio Tinto Alcan recently announced it had begun to develop the next generation of its AP Technology series. This new technology, called AP-Xe, will be developed in phases, including a potentially workable 'drained cathode' that, taken together with other portfolio technologies under development, could result in a lowering of unit energy consumption by up to 20%. This technology is designed to be retrofitted to previous AP series cells. While the maximum energy consumption savings are expected from greenfield applications, significant savings could also be achieved in retrofitted cells.