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Characterization of High Sulfur Bauxite and Its Phase Transformation During Desulfurization: A Perspective from Process Mineralogy

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Abstract

At present, high sulfur bauxite is gradually being used in the production of alumina industry to address the shortage of bauxite resources in China. However, sulfur-containing minerals in bauxite can cause iron pollution in the digestion system, corrode steel facilities, increase caustic consumption, and affect the quality of alumina products. From the perspective of process mineralogy, the quantitative evaluation of minerals by scanning electron microscopy method was introduced in this study to characterize and analyze high sulfur bauxite, and its mineral composition, dissociation features, embedding features, and symbiotic relationships were discussed in detail. The results show that diaspore (81.85%) is the main aluminous mineral in high sulfur bauxite, iron is mainly distributed in pyrite (59.96%) and hematite (14.49%), and sulfur is mainly distributed in pyrite (99.66%).After roasting, the content of diaspore in the aluminum containing minerals of high sulfur bauxite increases from 79.57 to 86.32%. Among the iron bearing minerals, pyrite decreased from 35.93 to 3.21%, and hematite increased from 31.95 to 80.75%. It directly reflects the transformation from pyrite to hematite in the desulfurization process. Pyrite still accounts for 96.97% of the sulfur bearing minerals. This work will provide technical and theoretical support for the low energy consumption utilization of high sulfur bauxite resources.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2022YFC2904401).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Advanced Metallurgy, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100083, China

    Mingzhuang Xie, Fengqin Liu & Hongliang Zhao

  2. School of Metallurgical and Ecological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100083, China

    Mingzhuang Xie, Fengqin Liu & Hongliang Zhao

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  1. Mingzhuang Xie
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Correspondence to Fengqin Liu or Hongliang Zhao.

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Xie, M., Liu, F. & Zhao, H. Characterization of High Sulfur Bauxite and Its Phase Transformation During Desulfurization: A Perspective from Process Mineralogy. J. Sustain. Metall. 9, 1466–1476 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40831-023-00739-5

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