Titan Project5 year plan

Presented byMartin caygill

Reyan RutherfordShaun LynnWill Fisher

Recent plant performance

• Currently profitable• Predictions of steady upswing in the industry• Competition from European sector• Increase growth of 2.3%/year• Asia produces 6-7% of product per year• Small net loss for first time• Started branching out in new areas for first time

(started producing rutile which is a TiO2 pigment)

• Continue to oporate the plant as it is.

• Replacing it with a larger sulphate process plant

• Replacing it with a chloride process plant

• Liscensing new technology in TiO2 manufacture

• Expanding into new market

options Problems

•Site requires refurbishment and updating to be made legally safe•Cant increase plant size because of location – too close to bird sanctuaries and rail lines•Waste is being pumped into the sea•Local hotels making it a public resort

Titanium Dioxide

• Due to this high refractive index and white colour, titanium dioxide, when deposited in a thin film is an excellent reflective optical coating.

•It is used as a pigment in paints, plastics, paper, toothpaste, and many other commonly used products.

•Titanium dioxide is a commonly used white pigment. It has an extremely high refractive index (2.7).

TiO2 Industry in AsiaLargest sources of ore are found in beach sand deposits on the coast of Australia, India, South Africa and the United States.

The sites location would be in close proximity to ore deposits, reducing costs of transporting the ore to the plant, and therefore maximizing profit.

However consumption of TiO2 is very low in India meaning that the majority of produce would be for the export market.

TiO2 Industry in Asia

•TiO2 consumption is highest in western Europe (e24%) and the USA (e23%)

•The TiO2 consumption in Asia is around 1/3 of the worlds TiO2 production.

•In terms of global transport India is a prime location for cheap export to the these markets

Sulphate Process

FeTiO3 (s) + 2H2SO4(l) TiSO4(aq) + FeSO4(aq) +2H2O(l)

Ilmenite ore is digested by Sulphuric acid

This is a continuous process

The TiO2 from the beginning is present in the form of soluble titanium sulphate.

TiSO4(aq) TiO2 nH20(aq) + H2SO4(l)

The anatase is produced by removing a small portion of the liquor and neutralizing it with a suitable base.

This produces anatase micro crystals

Which are reintroduced to the mother liquor and then hydrolyzed.

TiO2 nH2O(aq) TiO2(s) + nH2O(l)

The end product is then washed, calcined under high temperatures and then micronized to produce the end product

Advantages & Disavantages

•Wider range of raw material available – especially Ilmenite

•Product quality of Rutile base material is lower

•Larger buildings

•More man power necessary

•More environmental impact due to more waste

•Process needs co-product management and attractive markets for co-products

Process is easier to handle because of batch process

Production does not directly stop if one step fails

In general, the production costs are higher than that of the chloride process

The Chloride Process

TiO2(impure) + 2Cl2 + C TiCl4 + CO2

The TiO2 ore is fed into a chlorinator. Inside, the ore forms a bed and is fluidised by an air stream.

The temperature is increased to above 650o and then crushed coke is added on top.

mixture ignites, temperature increases independantly.

The air stream stops and is replaced by chlorine, producing titanium tetrachloride.

TiCl4 + O2 TiO2(pure) + 2Cl2

The TiCl4 siphoned away from the reaction vessel and distilled to form a purer TiCl4

This is then oxidized to produce Titanium dioxide and chlorine.

Advantages & Disadvantages

•Better product quality regarding the optical and chemical properties

•Smaller buildings

•Less man power necessary

•Higher requirements to the qualification of the staff

•Less environmental impact due to less waste

•Limited possibility to rework some of the waste to sellable co-products

•The process is more sensitive to production shortfall because it is a closed loop (due to the chlorine)

•Higher safety requirements due to the use of Cl2 and TiCl4

In general, the production costs are lower than that of the sulphate process

Alternative TiO2 Production

•Nanotechnology

•Solvothermal synthesis of Titanium dioxide

•produces nanostructured titanium dioxide in a lab.

Solvothermal synthesis alternative

•conducted in a stainless steel autoclave using a non aqueous precursor solution.

•accurately control the size, shape distribution and the crystalinity of the titanium dioxide nanopartictes and structures produced.

•The characteristics of the structures produced can be altered by changing experimental parameters:

•reaction temperature

•solvent type

•precursor solution

•reaction time

Schematic diagram of solvothermal synthesis setup

1. stainless steel autoclave

2. precursor solution

3. Teflon liner

4. stainless steel lid

5. spring

Conclusion

Over the next five years we believe the best course of action is to begin by cleaning up the sulphate process plant by acid recycling and environmentally friendly methods of effluent disposal, with a view to moving into nanotechnology production within five years due to its considerably lower cost, high yields and the environmentally safe nature of solvothermal synthesis of titanium dioxide.