Awards

The joint development and implementation of the Shrouded Tuyere Slag-Make Converting Process by Air Liquide Canada and Xstrata Nickel has resulted in the commercialization of a breakthrough technology in the converting of nickel-copper matte. The process combines an improved vessel design and a specific molten chemistry conceived by Xstrata Nickel together with a unique submerged gas injection technique developed by Air Liquide Canada. The process allows Xstrata Nickel to increase the treatment of secondary materials while improving pay-metal recovery, further improving the global competitiveness of their Sudbury Smelter. Based on this pioneering development, the Shrouded Tuyere technology has been tested in other base metal smelters, such as Thai Copper Industries in Rayong, Thailand. The use of shrouded injectors provided the breakthrough needed to convert matte at high oxygen enrichment levels while controlling refractory erosion in a punch-less operating mode. The Shrouded Tuyere Slag-Make Converter is one of the most energy intensive converters in the world in terms of chemical energy (oxygen) delivered to the molten bath. This is an excellent example of two Canadian companies; a metal producer and a gas injection technology provider, working together to overcome a major technical hurdle and develop a state-of-the-art novel pyrometallurgical converting process.