Exergy accounting applied to metallurgical systems: The case of nickel processing

Domínguez, Adriana; Valero, Alicia; Valero, Antonio

doi:10.1016/j.energy.2013.03.089

Cited by 29 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…The main objective of kiln exergy analysis is to provide a clear image of the process, identify and quantify irreversibilities and sources of energy inefficiency and exergy destruction, distinguish the quality of energy consumption, select optimum firing conditions, and reduce the ceramic kiln's environmental impact. Energy and exergy analysis advantages have been extensively discussed in studies of other industries, such as the lime [20][21][22], plaster [23][24][25], iron [26][27][28][29], steel [30], silicon [31], nickel [32], and especially the cement industry [33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42], as well as of power plants [43][44][45]. Although numerous studies have evaluated thermal efficiency and sought to optimise ceramic tile firing kilns [2] [46][47][48][49][50][51], mainly addressing technical, environmental, or energy issues, few studies have focused on an exergy analysis of ceramic processing [52][53][54][55][56].…”

Section: Glaze Preparationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond the energy balance: Exergy analysis of an industrial roller kiln firing porcelain tiles

Ferrer

Mezquita

Aguilella

et al. 2019

Applied Thermal Engineering

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The ceramic tile manufacturing process consumes large amounts of energy, mainly in the firing stage. Firing usually takes place in natural gas-fuelled continuous roller kilns, the most widely used tile firing facilities worldwide, which typically exhibit low energy efficiency (generally 5 to 20%). This paper investigates the application of energy and exergy balances to an industrial roller kiln firing porcelain tiles in order to identify the most critical parameters affecting kiln energy efficiency and propose ways of improving kiln energy performance. The experimental kiln measurements and thermodynamic calculations confirmed the kiln's low energy performance (15%). Exergy analysis showed that 83% of the total exergy input into the kiln was destroyed, only 10% of the exergy input being kept in the physico-chemical transformations of the ceramic tile composition. The main sources of irreversibilities: natural gas combustion, heat transfer in the fired tile cooling process, and heat transfer through the kiln surfaces, were identified and quantified. The study shows that waste heat (over 61%) recovery could be expected to significantly increase kiln energy performance. Finally, further measures are proposed for optimising kiln energy efficiency.

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Section: Glaze Preparationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond the energy balance: Exergy analysis of an industrial roller kiln firing porcelain tiles

Ferrer

Mezquita

Aguilella

et al. 2019

Applied Thermal Engineering

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“…Mining and processing of ores have environmental impacts on air, water and soil (Vintró et al, 2014). Mineral grades (mass fraction of the ore that is the target metal) have been falling globally for some time (Domínguez et al, 2013). Gold production, in particular has reached its "Hubbert peak" (Calvo et al, 2017) meaning that its production is declining as fast as it ever grew.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life Cycle impacts assessment of two gold extraction systems in Colombia: Open-pit and alluvial mining

Cano

Capaz

Hasenstab

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Purpose Gold mining has historically and significantly contributed to the Colombian economy. Gold extraction in Colombia is mainly done through two techniques: open-pit and alluvial mining. In this study, the environmental impacts of both these mining systems were analyzed using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) framework, including identification of the system components that contribute most to impacts. Methods Inventory data were obtained for two medium-scale mines1 in Colombia, one representing the open pit method and the other the alluvial method. Environmental impacts were classified and characterized by mid-point impact categories and further aggregated into end-point indicators through the ReCiPe (v. 1.11) methodology, which uses a hierarchist perspective. Results Results for end-point indicators show that the open-pit mining presents higher values in the Human Health damage category, influenced primarily by tailings and by the excavation process. For the alluvial mining, the overall impacts were an order of magnitude lower, with Ecosystem Quality as the most significant contributor due to the stripping of soil and vegetation. In the case of mid-point indicators, freshwater and marine ecotoxicity contribute the most to open-pit mining, while for alluvial mining, metal depletion and natural land transformation contribute the most. Climate change is also a significant impact category for alluvial and open-pit mining. Conclusions The is a substantial difference in environmental impacts between the two mining systems: the quantified total environmental impact was 1.0 x 1004 points for the open-pit mine and 2.4 x 1003 points for the alluvial mine. Since these mines represent specific Colombian operational conditions, this conclusion cannot be confidently extended to other operational contexts while. For example, results in other cases may depend on the local geological features and natural environment conditions. Knowing the critical mining supply chain stages for environmental performance will allow the decision-makers to provide the tools for more sustainable extraction and production. 1 The Colombian mining classification lies on small, medium, and big scale based on the number of hectares granted in the mining concession: small (≤150 ha), medium (≥150 ha, ≤5000 ha), big (≥ 5000 ha, ≤10000) or according with the volume of the maximum annual mining production small (≤250000 m3/year), medium (≥250000 m3/year, ≤1300000 m3/year), big (1300000≥m3/year), and not on the number of workers (Código de Minas, Ley 685 DE 2001, 2001)

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“…Mining and processing of ores have environmental impacts on air, water, and soil (Vintró et al 2014). Mineral grades (mass fraction of the ore that is the target metal) have been falling globally for some time (Domínguez et al 2013). Gold production, in particular, has reached its "Hubbert peak" (Calvo et al 2017) meaning that its production is declining as fast as it ever grew.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life cycle impacts assessment of two gold extraction systems in Colombia: open-pit and alluvial mining

Cano

Capaz

Hasenstab

et al. 2023

Int J Life Cycle Assess

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Purpose Gold mining has historically and significantly contributed to the Colombian economy. Gold extraction in Colombia is mainly done through two techniques: open-pit and alluvial mining. In this study, the environmental impacts of both these mining systems were analyzed using the life cycle assessment (LCA) framework, including identification of the system components that contribute most to impacts. Methods Inventory data were obtained for two medium-scale mines in Colombia, one representing the open-pit method and the other the alluvial method. Environmental impacts were classified and characterized by mid-point impact categories and further aggregated into end-point indicators through the ReCiPe (v. 1.11) methodology, which uses a hierarchist perspective. Results Results for end-point indicators show that the open-pit mining presents higher values in the human health damage category, influenced primarily by tailings and by the excavation process. For the alluvial mining, the overall impacts were an order of magnitude lower, with ecosystem quality as the most significant contributor due to the stripping of soil and vegetation. In the case of mid-point indicators, freshwater and marine ecotoxicity contribute the most to open-pit mining, while for alluvial mining, metal depletion and natural land transformation contribute the most. Climate change is also a significant impact category for alluvial and open-pit mining. Conclusions The is a substantial difference in environmental impacts between the two mining systems: the quantified total environmental impact was 1.0 × 10 04 points for the open-pit mine and 2.4 × 10 03 points for the alluvial mine. Since these mines represent specific Colombian operational conditions, this conclusion cannot be confidently extended to other operational contexts. For example, results in other cases may depend on the local geological features and natural environment conditions. Knowing the critical mining supply chain stages for environmental performance will allow the decision-makers to provide the tools for more sustainable extraction and production.

show abstract

Exergy accounting applied to metallurgical systems: The case of nickel processing

Cited by 29 publications

References 11 publications

Beyond the energy balance: Exergy analysis of an industrial roller kiln firing porcelain tiles

Beyond the energy balance: Exergy analysis of an industrial roller kiln firing porcelain tiles

Life Cycle impacts assessment of two gold extraction systems in Colombia: Open-pit and alluvial mining

Life cycle impacts assessment of two gold extraction systems in Colombia: open-pit and alluvial mining

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