Constellation, le dépôt institutionnel de l'Université du Québec à Chicoutimi

Résumé

Calcined petroleum coke and coal tar pitch are the raw materials used in producing carbon anodes for aluminum electrolysis. Carbon materials derived from biomasses are low in cost and considered renewable. Partial replacement of petroleum coke with bio-coke has the potential to reduce the environmental emissions during aluminum production. However, bio-coke usually exhibits low density compared to petroleum coke. High porosity not only decreases the density of a coke, but also increases the pitch requirement during anode production. Therefore, the physical and chemical structure of coke plays an important role in anode quality. Analysis of the physical structure is the first step in the determination of the raw material quality. In this study, the structural and morphological characterization of two calcined petroleum cokes and two biocokes were carried out using microscopic techniques. The results which compare the structures of bio-coke and petroleum cokes are presented.