Smelting and Casting Department

The cathode zinc plates already produced and weighed at the electrolysis section are delivered for melting by three feeder shafts to two channel induction furnaces. These furnaces operate at temperatures ranging between 550°C and 570°C. The trass formed on the surface of the molten mass is mechanically removed and separated into their metallic and oxidic components in two rotary furnaces. The metallic components are used for fining the zinc dust in the leaching section. The oxidic dust is used as input material in the roasting section. Compressed ammonium chloride is applied to the surface of the zinc in the baths to improve smelting behaviour.

After melting, the liquid cathode zinc is transported by graphite pumps through lined channels to the foundry circles were they are cast into a variety of formats in line with customer specifications. The zinc foam is removed from the surface during the casting process and re-melted and processed in the rotary furnaces. Forklift trucks are used to extract the blocks produced in this way from the moulds after which they are marked by hand, worked as necessary, weighed and then stored in the metal magazine for distribution by the sales team. The quality of the zinc produced in this way achieves purities of 99.995% – the equivalent of 50 grams of impurities in one tonne of zinc.

The smelting plant is also used to operate several secondary plants that help secure operations in other areas. At the zinc-dust fining section, liquid zinc is aerated into a fine dust possessing different sizes of grain. The plant achieves outputs of 30 tonnes of dust per day. This material is transported by pneumatic equipment to the leaching departments and used for precipitating impurities from solutions.

Various large filter systems have been installed for effectively removing dust from the smelting operations. High-performance measuring equipment is used to monitor dust levels emitted from these plants. Measurements have shown that some levels fall considerably below the officially demanded levels.

Ruhr-Zink GmbH uses compressors to produce its own compressed air. The compressed air is dried at production and delivered through a complicated system to the different users within the factory. The network normally operates at pressures ranging between six and seven bar. An open cooling tower has been installed for cooling the air compressors.

The metal magazine is located behind the smelting plant. It possesses truck- and rail-loading facilities and has a capacity of 10,000 tonnes of zinc.


Casting Plant.

In the electrolysis of the Ruhr-Zink the cathode zinc sheets already make an chop produced directly over three filling pits of two induction furnaces melted there. The running temperature of the two furnaces are between 550°C and 570°C. On the surface of the melt screen end trass mechanically takes off and one separates into two rotary furnaces into metallic and oxidic form. The metallic fraction is used for blowing zinc dust for the leaching. The powdery oxidic fraction is used in the roasting plant again. The improvement of the fusion behavior ammonium chloride becomes meeting demand, sucked. Taking off salt, in the form of Presslingen brought on the surface of the zinc bathes.

Melting the cathode zinc this is transported over graphite pumps and lined liquid to the two casting circles and poured there according to the customer requirements into different sizes. When pouring the zinc foam is removed from the surface and likewise melted and regenerated over the drum oven again. The produced blocks are formed out afterwards by fork-lift trucks, manually marked, if necessary worked over again and weighed and last in the metal magazine made available to the transports.

The quality of the zinc reaches a purity of 99.995%, max 50 gr impurities per ton zinc.

In the zinc dust plant is converted liquid zinc by air blowing to fine dust of different grain size. The capacity of the plant is approx. 30t/day zinc dust. This material is transported pneumatically to the leaching and used there for the precipitation by impurities from solutions.

For the effective dedusting large filtering units are installed. These plants are constantly supervised over efficient measuring instruments on the dust content. The contents are the partly substantially under officially demanded limit values.

Compressed air for the Ruhr-Zink is produced here by compressors. Produced air is dried and transported by a branched system to the consumers of the plant. The system pressure is designded between 6 to 7 bar. For compressor cooling an open cooling tower is developed.

Awaiting the transports to our customers the zinc-sizes a metal magazine with a capacity of app. 10,000 to is established. Usually the offtake of the zinc is running by trucks.