What Bob Becher s developments meant to the world pigment industry and WA in particular

Transcription

1 What Bob Becher s developments meant to the world pigment industry and WA in particular Nick Bernard 26 November 2013 The Bob Becher Centenary Symposium

2 World Pigment Production 1910 s to 1950 s all TiO 2 pigment was produced from the sulphate process Ilmenite + sulphuric acid = large waste volume Ferrous sulphate and neutralised waste acid Much of the waste was marine discharged (e.g. the plant in Tasmania discharged directly into Bass Strait but later shipped the waste out into the Tasman) similar disposal in the North Sea from European plants DuPont (USA) and Thann & Mulhouse (France) independently developed the chloride process Rutile + chlorine + coke = minimal waste, high grade durable pigment 1953 DuPont built first small scale plant at Edgemoor in the US using rutile as feed 1958 DuPont built 23 kt/y plant also at Edgemoor using ilmenite - May well have been due to lack of rutile but was also a lot cheaper - Ilmenite largely unsuitable due to cost of chlorine and waste disposal (FeCl 3 ) Only DuPont continues to use ilmenite at a significant rate 2 2

3 Chloride vs Sulphate Pigment By 1960 s 20% of the world TiO 2 pigment was from the chloride process From 1970 s to 2000 almost all new pigment capacity was chloride By 1990 s 50% of the world TiO 2 pigment was from the chloride process kt 9,000 8,000 7,000 6,000 5,000 4,000 3,000 2,000 Chloride Sulfate % Chloride World Pigment Capacity 3 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 1,000 10% 0 0% Source: Reg Adams, ARTIKOL 3

4 Why develop a process to upgrade ilmenite? Growth of chloride limited WA s exposure to the new growth area as it was predominantly ilmenite (sulphate) based and the chloride process needed rutile WA was not a rutile supplier at that point in time (not until >1976) How to make ilmenite amenable for use in chloride plants AND How to overcome the waste issues of the sulphate process the discharge of waste into Bass Strait & Tasman Sea ANSWER = Upgrade ilmenite = Becher process Metallise the iron in the ilmenite and rust it out leaving a synthetic rutile This is where Iluka in the form of one of its predecessors, Western Titanium, entered the arena commencing construction of a 10 kt/y demonstration plant at South Capel in

5 What was the result? 7 kilns built in WA - 6 Iluka - 1 Tiwest A & B kiln demolished in 2000 s Actual capacities much higher through efficiency kt/y now >190 kt/y kt/y SR Tiwest 1992 D Kiln 1991 SR C Kiln 1988 B Kiln 1974 A Kiln kilns gives a current capacity of ~700 kt/y of SR ~19% of chloride feed capacity

6 First Commercial Becher Plant A kiln at South Capel 30 m kiln 10,000 t/y Pre-oxidation kiln 6 Decommissioned

7 Second Commercial Becher Plant B kiln at South Capel 7 44 m kiln 30,000 t/y Pre-oxidation kiln eventually bypassed Pre-Oxidation Kiln Reduction Kiln Aeration Decommissioned

8 First Westralian Sands SR Plant SR1 kiln at North Capel 68 m kiln 100,000 t/y NO Pre-oxidation 8

9 Geraldton Kilns 1988 & 1991 C & D kiln at Geraldton 63 m kilns 100,000 t/y each SREP C Kiln D Kiln 9 Aeration 9

10 Second Westralian Sands Becher Plant SR2 kiln at North Capel 90 m kiln 130,000 t/y Waste Heat Recovery - 8MW Mirror image of Tiwest s Plant 10

11 Ilmenite to altered ilmenite Initial development work and plants (A & B kilns) used primary ilmenite which 11 required pre-oxidation to achieve the required products Convert all Fe to ferric to stress the lattice and allow the upgrading process to be effective Eventually moved to altered ilmenites, ilmenite which had been upgraded in-situ by natural weathering Unsuitable for sulphate process serendipitously WA had a lot of this mineral going to waste particularly in the SW Eliminated a stage from the process which was a cost saving Sulphate ilmenite was still in demand in the sulphate sector Collie coal was ideal for the process hence the centricity of the operating plants with respect to Collie Has also been a hurdle to the construction of Becher plants elsewhere Iluka has expanded the range of ilmenites used in the SR process to cover a wider range as well as generate a larger palette of products. 11

12 What is the benefit of SR to the pigment industry? Higher grade than slag 85-95% TiO 2 depending on product type More plentiful than Rutile May have a faster reaction rate than rutile or slag lower chlorinator beds, lower pressure drops Can be lower in problem elements (e.g. SiO 2, V 2 O 5 ) than Rutile Custom products Iluka has developed a number of SR products to address a range of customer requirements - SR Premium lower Fe and Mn - SREP low U & Th - SR Ultra high grade, low contaminants - SR

13 So where does SR fit in the overall pigment business? 13 13

14 SR Contribution to Chloride Feedstocks kt TiO Slag (UGS) Slag (Sorel) Slag (Chlor) Synrutile Rutile Ilmenite % Feed Chloride Pigment Feedstock Source % 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% % 20% 10% 0 0% Source: Reg Adams, ARTIKOL 14

15 What is the benefit to WA? Iluka has produced ~10 Mt of SR and WA combined ~14 Mt 15 Represents ~18% of the TiO 2 units into chloride pigment ( ) In the same timeframe, Iluka has produced ~5 Mt of Rutile Clearly represents a significant value to Iluka and by inference to WA 15

16 Iluka Resources Limited For more information, contact: Nick Bernard, Technical Development Manager 16