Project # 9b - Advanced Control (process data and regulation approaches) - Breakthrough Technology for Primary Aluminium

Primary production of aluminium is highly energy intensive, with energy costs representing 22-36% of operating costs in smelters. The Australian aluminium smelting industry consumed 29,500 GWh of electricity in 2007, 13% of final electricity consumption in Australia. The long term sustainability of the aluminium smelting industry depends on energy-efficient production technologies for global competitiveness. The aim of the project is to improve auto-diagnosis of the occurrence of the root-cause for abnormal process conditions in the smelting cells that adversely impact energy and environmental efficiencies. The expected outcomes include: (1) An adaptive model for the change in control signal and control algorithms with different abnormalities and at different operating line current levels; (2) A sequence of diagnostic sub-routines based on processing signals at different; (3) A schemes for alarms and guidelines for human interface interaction when needed.