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U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

    ARC, ANL, and ORNL Have Joined an Aluminum Industry Consortium

    January 25, 2002

    Photo of a furnace.Under the OIT Aluminum Industry of the Future research effort, three laboratoriesRC, ANL, and ORNLave joined an aluminum industry consortium, Secat, Inc., to improve operations and energy efficiency in the aluminum industry. The furnace shown here is designed to study the formation of dross during aluminum melting. Reducing dross formation can contribute significantly to increasing furnace efficiency and reducing melt losses. The furnace is also serving a test stage that the industrial collaborators and ARC are designing for the Experimental Melting Unit (EMU). The furnace is a fully instrumented test-bed used to explore new options in aluminum melting furnace efficiency.