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BAUXITE RESIDUE ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS AT ALCAN ARVIDA RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT CENTRE: STRATEGY AND STATUS

Fortin, L., Martinent-Catalot, V. and Guimond, J.

Over the last years, Alcan Arvida Research and Development Centre (ARDC) has been involved in many different projects on red mud enhancement. Since the potential applications ensuing from these projects often were in areas outside our traditional businesses, the projects were carried out in partnership with universities, institutes, government or industries. In that context, a portfolio of diverse projects was built looking at applications in fields such as water and soil treatment, building materials and chemical valorization of red mud. While technology watch may benefit from this diversity, some rules must still be applied when selecting the projects to maintain a logical and focussed portfolio. This presentation aims to 1) present selected parts of the strategy used at Alcan’s ARDC for selecting R&D projects on red mud/bauxite residue enhancement and 2) illustrate the application of this strategy by giving two examples.