COMPUTATION OF ALUMINUM REDUCTION CELL ENERGY BALANCE USING ANSYS® FINITE ELEMENT MODELS

Over the last ten years, the industry standard for modeling aluminum reduction cell energy balance transitioned from 2D “in-house” codes to 3D commercial codes, such as the ANSYS® finite element code. This paper reviews various 3D modeling tools developed during this transition, including 3D cathode slice, half anode, full cell slice, and cathode corner/quarter models, alongside their respective advantages and disadvantages. Furthermore, it revisits the 2D model to present a new enhanced approach. Given that the thermo-electric design of an aluminum reduction cell significantly impacts cell power consumption, expressed in kWh/kg of aluminum produced, improvements in thermal balance can lead to increased production capabilities in smelters. The complexity of the Hall-Héroult aluminum electrolysis process, involving various physical and chemical phenomena, poses challenges in developing reliable theoretical analysis models. Nevertheless, valuable mathematical modeling tools have been established over the years, starting from 2D thermal models with “assumed” source terms for Joule heat production. This paper contributes to the continued advancement of modeling methods for optimizing aluminum reduction cell performance.