| About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2025 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Aluminum Alloys: Development and Manufacturing Supplier Forum
|
| Presentation Title |
Enhanced Aluminum Billets Heat Treatment Process in Batch Homogenizer Furnace for Energy Efficiency and Cycle Time Reduction |
| Author(s) |
Mohamed I. Hassan Ali, Mostafa Abdelsamie |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Mohamed I. Hassan Ali |
| Abstract Scope |
This study proposes utilizing flue gases from aluminum melting furnaces as the heat source for billet batch homogenizers, aiming to enhance the sustainability of cast house operations. Homogenizing, a post-casting heat treatment, involves heating billets to approximately 580°C for 180 minutes to relieve thermal stresses. By using waste heat from remelting furnaces, this process can reduce natural gas consumption. This approach mirrors the successful practice of using waste heat for metal scrap preheating, which has achieved 10-20% savings in furnace gas consumption. The feasibility of this method is supported by validated 3-D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models that study the remelting and holding processes, as well as the potential for waste heat recovery in both scrap preheating and billet homogenization. Additionally, considerations for the design of flue gas transportation pipelines and connections aim to maximize heat utilization and minimize losses. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Undecided |
| Keywords |
Aluminum, Recycling and Secondary Recovery |