Copper bars for the Hall-Héroult process

Abstract

The use of copper inserts in steel collector bars has proven to be an efficient way of improving the Hall-Heroult process. It helps at decreasing the specific energy consumption and improving the cell productivity. A further step is presented for which only copper is used inside the carbon cathode. The feasibility was modeled, tested at laboratory scale and measured in a real cell. The issues, advantages and potential of using 100% copper bars as current collectors inside the carbon blocks are discussed. Modeling results are validated by measurements.