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Searching for Acidity or the Case of the Missing Chlorine: An Option for a Global Closed Loop Alkalinity–Acidity Cycle for Bauxite Residue Neutralization Based on HCl from PVC Recycling

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Abstract

The Bayer process depends on the large-scale use of caustic soda (NaOH)—produced at > 60 million tons/year from NaCl by the chlor-alkali process—and is thus one of the major consumers of the alkalinity generated by the latter. A part of this alkalinity then ultimately ends up in the bauxite residue from the Bayer process, arguably constituting one of the main chemical, technical, and environmental challenges for a valorization or long-term safe disposal and remediation of this material. By stoichiometric and chemical necessity, the complementary acidity resides in the Cl2 gas is also produced in the chlor-alkali process and is thus latent in the chlorinated compounds—notably polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and chlorinated solvents, such as dichloromethane or 1,1,1,-trichloroethane. Recapturing and recycling Cl2 from these uses in the form of hydrochloric acid (HCl) by means of a controlled thermal decomposition of the chlorinated hydrocarbons could—in principle—serve as a source of Brønsted acidity for the neutralization of bauxite residue (Red Mud) thereby transforming it into a nonhazardous material of much lower environmental concern limited to its NaCl content. This could establish a closed alkalinity–acidity cycle on a global scale while simultaneously addressing the end-of-life fate of environmentally persistent PVC that otherwise either is deposited in landfills or can end up in the oceans in form of dispersed microplastics.

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(Adapted and expanded from Ref. [37])

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Acknowledgements

The author thanks Dr. Jenny Cox (at the Dept. of Chem., Univ. of Guelph) for helpful suggestions.

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  1. Department of Chemistry, Guelph-Waterloo-Centre for Graduate Work in Chemistry (GWC)2, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada

    Marcel Schlaf

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Correspondence to Marcel Schlaf.

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The author declares no Conflict of Interest with any of the stake holders and industries mentioned in this article.

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The contributing editor for this article was Yiannis Pontikes.

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Schlaf, M. Searching for Acidity or the Case of the Missing Chlorine: An Option for a Global Closed Loop Alkalinity–Acidity Cycle for Bauxite Residue Neutralization Based on HCl from PVC Recycling. J. Sustain. Metall. 5, 1–8 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40831-018-0193-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40831-018-0193-1

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