Slide Background
Slide Background

A NEW MEMBRANE PROCESS TO PURIFY BAYER LIQUORS

Armstrong, L., Richter, K., Taylor, D., Mitchell, V., Fane, T. and Glastras, M.

Organic impurities in Bayer liquor are known to cause serious yield, quality and operational issues in plants to an extent dependant on bauxite quality and processing conditions. Various organic removal processes have been proposed but only a few have favourable economics for established application.

Recent advances in membrane technology mean certain membranes are now more amenable to use with dilute caustic streams. This paper outlines the testing of new nano-filtration membranes for their durability in various Bayer plant liquors and their effectiveness at removing liquor impurities particularly organics. This organic removal is linked to previous work on the impact of various molecular weight fractions from Weipa bauxite on precipitation yields and product quality under typical growth and agglomeration conditions.

These results will indicate the viability of this new process application for improved liquor purity and productivity in Bayer plants.