| About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2025 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Aluminum Reduction Technology
|
| Presentation Title |
Optimizing Anode Change in Aluminum Cells – A Digital Twin Approach |
| Author(s) |
Sebastien Guerard, Pierre-Luc Voyer |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Sebastien Guerard |
| Abstract Scope |
The anodes in an aluminum cell must be periodically replaced, a process which requires a way to position the new ones at a precise distance from the metal pad. Some of our smelters employ theoretical gauging, where the new position is calculated based on the carbon consumption rate. This method relies heavily on an accurate estimation of the consumption rate, and also on having mechanisms to detect and correct cells that deviate from the desired state.
In this paper, we present a simple digital twin that continuously estimates the anode position, setting offset, and consumption rate for each cell. It has been implemented in our smelters, both as interactive tool to guide decision-making and as an automated correction algorithm directly connected to the production system. Our results show an improved coefficient of variation, lower instability, and a reduction in the number or pots drifting outside of the desired range. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: Light Metals |
| Keywords |
Machine Learning, Modeling and Simulation, |