Orbite achieves milestone with the production of aluminum from SGA

First samples of aluminum have been produced by Exploration Orbite from Smelter Grade Alumina.

This initiative represents a major milestone for Orbite. The SGA helps meet industry specifications for particle size and purity. A Canadian research facility has confirmed the quality of SGA through electrolysis smelting.

Mr Lionel Roue professor of INRS EMC helped in the production of SGA samples. The aluminum has undergone a number of electrolysis smelting testing at the INRS.

The tests showed that the faradaic efficiency and electrical potential of the SGA samples are consistent. The samples are same like metallurgical alumina which is generally used by global aluminum smelters. The experiments also confirmed that Orbite’s alumina exhibits a similar characteristic into a molten salt reduction cell as the standard alumina.

The Cap Chat pilot manufacturing facility of Orbite has restarted the production of metallurgical alumina after minor upgrade. The metallurgical alumina is targeted at aluminum manufacturing market. Every year, nearly 82 million tonnes of alumina are manufactured worldwide and the amount is anticipated to increase to 156 million tonnes by 2020.

The pilot plant will focus on production optimization after SGA sample production. In addition, the facility plans to produce the information needed for the feasibility study on SGA.