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By Mohamed Ahmed, A. Kawy

"Smelting of scrap copper and residual anodes and cathodes carried out in a reverberatory type furnace. In this, deoxidation process is carried out by wood, which acts as a resource of reduction gases such carbon monoxide, hydrogen and methane. Use of wood causes the formation of soot pollutants and efficiency of oxygen removal from copper is low leading to added costs in removing contaminants. This expensive problem was solved by using of reformed natural gas as a source of reduction gases (CO+ H2).IntroductionThree reverberatory furnaces were used for smelting of scrap copper and residual anodes and cathodes. Each furnace had a 7tpd capacity and was operated at 1183 °C.In this furnace, Step1-compressed air supplied by tubes from the side of the furnace to remove sulfur from copper matte by oxidation .The copper is also oxidized to copper oxide .[1]Step 2- copper from matte is deoxidized by a reductant. Typically deoxidation process is carried out using wood as a resource of carbon monoxide, hydrogen and methane which are the reduction gases. Use of wood causes the following:1- Forms soot pollutants2- Oxygen removal efficiency from copper is low; more contamination in copper matte increased energy in deoxidation3-the process is highly expensive.In the recent trends, this problem has been solved by using reformed natural gas as a source of reduction gases (CO+ H) .This results in 1-Reduced pollution during smelting.2- High efficiency in the removal of oxygen from copper to produce oxygen free copper. The surface of copper produced from this method is smooth which helps in forming and machining.3- Low cost and natural gas is more readily available in Egypt than wood."

Jan 1, 2010

By Jeffrey D. Winterton

Keywords: Copper, ion exchange, sulfonic acid, bis-picolylamine, ion exchange modeling, ion exchange kinetics As part of an investigation into the feasibility of using ion exchange resins to recover copper from aqueous waste streams generated during the manufacturing of semiconductor devices, the uptake of copper onto two ion exchange resins was investigated. The resins studied were DOWEX G-26, a standard gel type sulfonic acid resin, and DOWEX M4195, a macroporous chelating resin with a bis-picolylamine functional group. The equilibrium and kinetic behavior of the uptake of copper were investigated over a range of copper concentrations with constant sulfate concentration and different levels of acidity. The homogeneous structure of the G-26 resin yields equilibrium relationships that fit the Langmuir equation, and equilibration times of less than 30 minutes. The uptake behavior of M4195 is complicated by the need to absorb co-ions to maintain electroneutrality, resulting in uptake profiles that change character with increasing copper concentrations, and extended equilibration times.

Jan 1, 2005

By P. L. Sibrell

The U.S. Bureau of Mines has tested cyanide leaching for recovery of palladium (Pd) from spent petroleum processing catalysts. Three different catalyst samples were supplied by a spent-catalyst processor. These catalysts consisted of a zeolite base and contained 0.4 to 0.7 pct Pd. During alkaline cyanide leaching, the catalysts exhibited ion-exchange properties due to their zeolite matrices. Hydrogen ions were released from the zeolite in exchange for sodium ions in solution, resulting in a significant decrease in solution pH. This could present a safety hazard because of the potential for release of toxic hydrogen cyanide gas. A pretreatment .step where the catalysts were contacted with a 1.0M sodium hydroxide solution was found to prevent the pH shift from occurring. Following the sodium hydroxide pretreatment, two stages of leaching at 160 °C with solution containing 1 pct sodium cyanide and 0.1M sodium hydroxide gave at least 75 and up to 95 pct Pd recovery. The Pd was quantitatively recovered from the leach solution by thermal decomposition in an autoclave at 250 °C for 1 h. The Pd content of the precipitate was over 50 pct. Thermal decomposition also decreased the total cyanide content of the barren solution to less than 0.2 mg/L. The catalyst leach residues passed the Federal Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure and the California Waste Extraction Test, indicating that landfill disposal of the leach residues would be acceptable.

Jan 1, 1995

By Jing Zhan, Gui Li, Wei-feng Li, Li-Hua Jiang, Chuan-fu Zhang, Jian-yang Hwang

Thermodynamics analysis for processing the charge with lead concentrate and lead sulfate-containing materials in bottom blowing smelting furnace was conducted. The results show that the technology of large-scale processing PbSO4- containing materials with PbS concentrate in bottom blowing furnace under the condition of using high-iron slag type, batch heat supplement, high temperature and rich oxygen is thermodynamically feasible. The exploration test and industrial experiment confirm the results. When S content in mixed ore is 16~17% with coke foam content of about 5%, the lead paste amount can be increased up to 40%.

Jan 1, 2015

By John J. Mazza

Treatability studies were performed to determine the effectiveness of two commercially available treatment methods (solvent extraction and thermal desorption) for the removal of PCBs and PAHs from contaminated dredged riverbed sediments. The solvent extraction method evaluated was the B.E.S.T. process which extracts the contaminants with triethylamine. The thermal desorption method utilized was the ATP process which desorbs the contaminants at elevated temperature in an anaerobic atmosphere. A description of both methods and. an evaluation of the treatability study results is provided. Each treatment method was used to treat two separate samples (high and low concentration) from the site. Overall, both methods proved to be very effective with solvent extraction achieving 98% removal of both PCBs and PAHs and thermal desorption achieving better than 99% removal of both the PCBs and PAHs from the high concentration sample. Both solvent extraction and thermal desorption achieved greater than 99% removals of PCBs and PAHs from the low concentration sample. Vendor cost estimates for full scale treatment were roughly equivalent. The primary differences between the two methods lies in the realm of permitting, operational requirements, and emission concerns.

Jan 1, 1994

By Kazuyuki Kakegawa

The sintering characteristics and the change in the compositional distribution in the PbTiO3 PbZrO3-Pb(Mgl/3Nb2/3)O3 system during the sintering process by spark plasma sintering (SPS) method were examined. They were compared with those by a normal sintering method. The densification by the normal sintering was slow even at high temperatures, When SPS method was employed, much lower temperature and shorter period resulted in sintered bodies having almost the theoretical density. As expected in normal sintering, the compositional distribution decreased as the sintered density increased. On the contrary, the change in the compositional distribution by SPS was much smaller than that in the normal sintering. This sintering characteristic of SPS suggested a possibility of fabrication of sintered material having a desired compositional distribution.-

Jan 1, 2003

By Youqi Fan

Complicated copper oxalate precursor powder was prepared using ammonium oxalate as precipitating agent in the Cu(II)-C2O42--NH3-NH4+-H2O system. The composition and morphology of the powder are characterized by chemical analysis, X-ray Diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), infrared spectroscopy (IR). The effects of temperature, copper ion concentration, pH value are investigated. It?s indicated by the experimental results that precursor of copper oxalate is prepared below a critical pH value, whereas the precursor turns to be a complicated copper salt combined with NH3 while over the pH value. Probable chemical formula CuC2O4?x(NH3)?yH2O can be assumed which x and y are relation to experimental conditions. Technological parameters, such as temperature, initial copper concentration and solution pH value, have significant effects on particle size, morphology and dispersion of precursor powder. By controlling certain technological conditions, various morphologies of precursor, pie shape, spindle shape and rod shape can be synthesized.

Jan 1, 2009

By Jie Ma, Shun-Li Zhao, Jian Zhao, Jie-Yu Zhang

"Microstructural morphology evolution of Ni-45wt.%Mo droplets during rapid solidification process was investigated using an advanced modified 3D cellular automaton-finite element(CAFE) model by CALCOSOFT software. The model was modified by User-defined functions (UDFs) and validated with experimental solidification microstructural morphology of Ni-45wt.%Mo droplets available in the literature. Then, the influences of convection heat transfer coefficient, superheat of the alloy droplets and droplets size were investigated during the rapid solidification process. The predictions show that microstructural morphology is obviously sensitive to convection heat transfer coefficient and droplet size. With the decrease of convection heat transfer coefficient, the grain density decreases. In addition, the decrease of the droplet size could obtain refined microstructure. However, decrease the superheat ofNi-45wt.%Mo droplets has little effect on microstructural morphology.IntroductionFor several decades, much attention has been paid to undercooled alloy droplets of rapid solidification process for which can obtain refined microstructure, decreased microsegregation and extended solubility of alloying elements [1-3]. Extensive prior work shows that solidification of droplets plays an essential role in advanced material properties [ 4]. Consequently, it is very important to investigate the microstructural morphology evolution, especially for dendrite growth during non-equilibrium solidification process, for dendrite growth reflected the kinetics of the crystal growth process."

Jan 1, 2013

By Pengfu Tan

A thermodynamic model of KIVCET lead smelting process has been developed. The model has the capability to predict the distribution behaviors of Pb, Zn, Fe, S, O, As, and heat balance in KIVCET direct lead smelting furnace. The compositions of lead bullion, matte, slag and gaseous phases, and heat balance are calculated. The effect of the ratio between oxygen and feed on the chemistry of the smelt and heat balance of the coke checker has been simulated and discussed. The thermodynamic model also helps to understand the tapping issue of the lead bullion. In this paper, some applications of this model in the industry have been presented.

Jan 1, 2006

By Chen Zhang

Polycrystalline Ti-rich NiTi thin films have been deposited from a single NiTi target using a DC magnetron sputtering system. Free standing film was obtained by using a single crystal silicon substrate. Thickness ofthe thin films is controlled at around 12 pm. In this investigation, the effect of deposition temperature on the microstructure and transformation temperatures of the thin films is studied. Influence of post heat treatment temperatures on the properties of the thin films is also investigated. Transformation temperatures of the thin films are determined by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The surface microstructure of the thin films is studied using a scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the crystallinity is determined using x-ray diffractometry. It is found that the thin film deposited on a hot substrate is crystalline even when the substrate temperature is as low as 300°C, while the normal crystallization temperature for an amorphous thin film is around 500°C. The microstructure of the film deposited on a hot substrate shows a very fine grain size. The grain size increases with increasing substrate temperature during deposition. The effect of post deposition heat treatment on grain size is minimal.

Jan 1, 1999

By Jian Li, Guo Chen, Bingguo Liu, Hongying Xia, Jinhui Peng, Libo Zhang

"Decomposition of ammonium tetramolybdate to prepare Mo03 using silicon carbide crucible in microwave fields was investigated. The results were analyzed Using TG-DTG and X-ray diffraction. Meanwhile, the effects of heating rat, material thickness, socking time, socking temperature on the structure of preparing Mo03 were studied. TG-DTG curves show that the decomposition process of ammonium tetramolybdate is only one stage, in the temperature range 300-350°C, whose begin to decompose when temperature increases beyond 300°C. The molybdenum trioxide was prepared by thermal decomposition. The quality ofMo03 was not affected under the heating rat is 12°C/min. It was beneficial for decomposition ratio with the lower material thickness, longer soaking time, and higher soaking temperature. XRD curves showed that it is viable method for preparation of Mo03 by decomposition from ammonium tetramolybdate in microwave fields.IntroductionMolybdenum is widely used in national defense, aviation, industrial and agricultural production as rare refractory metal. Molybdenum trioxide is vital raw materials for the process of preparation of molybdenum. The traditional production technology of molybdenum oxide is that ammonium tetramolybdate is calcined in rotary kiln or 4-tube furnace [J,2J. But the longer production time, the higher production cost, the lower furnace thermal efficiency, and bigger the energy consumption, especially the powder is easy to leak, the working environment is poor by using rotary kiln [ 3 l _ The particle of molybdenum oxide is non-uniform by using 4-tube furnace because of the uneven temperature of every tube and the poor exhaust of boat bottom [4l _ However microwave heating is quick and uniformity, it is a meaningful research that the microwave is used in the process of calcining ammonium tetramolybdate."

Jan 1, 2013

By Yuanyuan Wang, Hong Li, Xueting Liu, Hao Bai, Kang Zhou

"Phase change materials are widely used in efficient utilization of energy and new energy technology. Especially, more attention has been paid to composite phase material, which is applied on architectural energy-saving and efficient working fluid. In this paper, stearic acid-silicon dioxide composite material was prepared by sol-gel process from tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and stearic acid (SA). The material was investigated by Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The FE-SEM results show that 3D-grids of silicon dioxide were formed clearly and SA was encapsulated in the silicon dioxide shell. The FT-IR results show that there were no chemical reactions between silicon dioxide and SA, which is the chemical property of the composite material, is stable. The DSC results show that the composite phase change material has favorable heat capacity. This material is expected to be used to make a cooling working fluid.1. IntroductionEnergy thermal storage becomes increasingly prominent issue in recent years, because thermal storage has been used in many aspects, for example, it can be added into building materials to improve heat conditioning. Another potential application of thermal storage materials is that the intermittent waste heat can be collected and recycled effectively by using the thermal storage facility. Thus, energy thermal storage plays a significant role in conserving available energy and improving its utilization [1]. Energy thermal storage includes sensible heat storage and latent heat storage. The latent heat storage has great heat density with a constant temperature during the phase change process [2-5]. Large quantities of latent heat storage will be absorbed and released when phase change takes place. Based on the former researches, some phase change material (PCM), such as fatty acid and paraffin waxes, has been proved to have high latent heat storage capacity and appropriate thermal properties [5-6]. However, using the PCM in energy storage systems directly is restricted, e.g. some properties of organic PCM, like form-stability and thermal conductivity, are not good enough to use. Meanwhile, almost all the inorganic PCMs are corrosive and most materials may cause sub cooling and segregation [7-9].The other problem is that the leakage when the temperature reaches the phase change point. Therefore, encapsulated composite phase change material (CPCM) emerged in order to solve the problem of leaking out, minimize the sub cooling and prevent phase segregation. [10-13] However, the easy flammability of fatty acid also has hindered the development of PCM. Accordingly, it has been found out that silicon compounds are environmentally friendly promising substitutes for halogen-containing flame retardants. Especially, silsesquioxanes are excellent in the flame retardancy. So CPCM can be encapsulated with SiO2 acting supporting material."

Jan 1, 2014

By H. Itou, J. M. Toguri, T. Takasu

"Marangoni convection has a large effect on materials processing since it remarkably enhances heat and mass transport near a free interface. To have a better understanding of the behavior of Marangoni convection in molten salts, observation and calculation of the thermal convection in a column held between a pair of Pt disks (2mm in diameter) fixed to hot thermocouples, were carried out.Calculated flow patterns and absolute values of fluid velocity agreed well with the observed results. When the temperatures of both disks were set equal and the height of liquid column was 2.4mm, four vortexes were generated on the longitudinal plane with a typical velocity of 15mm/s . From the calculated isothermal lines, the behavior of the enhanced heat transport was obvious; fluid heated at the disks was conveyed to the free surface and the cooled fluid at the surface was conveyed to the inner region. Increase in the height of column and/or increase in the absolute value of applied temperature difference lead to increase in fluid velocity lineally in this calculation range.IntroductionIn the processing of many materials, fluid flow of melts has a large effect on refining capabilities and on the characteristics of the produced material. Marangoni convection is generated when a spatial gradient of interfacial tension exists on the free interface due to differences in temperature and/or concentration. This promotes heat and mass transfer locally near the interface.For example, Marangoni convection which are created following the dissolution of interfacially active materials, increases the local corrosion rate of refractories (1-3). In absorption and discharge of oxygen and/or nitrogen in a molten metal, the effective reaction rate of the gas components through the gas-liquid interface increases (4-7). Also in crystal growth, the distribution of defects and impurities in the crystal is affected and this can alter its quality (8-11 ). The temperature distribution is also affected and can greatly change the productivity. For these reasons, the effectiveness of Marangoni convection in refining should be quantitatively clarified and its control should be better understood."

Jan 1, 1997

By Chao Li, Lim Hongxu, Yuyue Wang, Xie Yang

"A intergrated process of sulfuric acid leaching, sodium chloride leaching, lead chloride crystallization, lead hydroxide synthesis and roasting was carried out for the recovery of lead, cadmium, copper and zinc from lead smelting dust containing various metals. The results showed that the separation of cadmium, zinc and copper from dust could be obtained after sulfuric acid leaching and corresponding leaching rate were 92.12%, 90.25% and 88.26% respectively. The subsequent sodium chloride leaching carried out for lead with optimized parameters as: sodium chloride concentration 250g/L, leaching temperature 90°C, leaching time 2h, pulp density 33g/L, 0.12mol/L CaCh; The lead compounds crystallization rate reached 86.67%, and then transferred into mPbO·nH2O, the product of 98.66% ß-PbO could be obtained through roasting under 502°C. In the end, a feasible method of ß-PbO preparation from lead containing dust was put forward.IntroductionThe pyro-metallurgy flue dust from smelting lead activities are often stockpiled and pose potential environmental risks due to the heavy toxic elements, such as Pb, Cd, As, Cu, Cl, and Zn which are contained in the dust. With the rapid depletion of rich ore resources in recent years, it has become increasingly more financially attractive to recover valuable metals from previously stockpiled dust, while simultaneously reducing the potential of environmental pollution from toxic elements contained in the dust. Nowadays, pyro-metallurgical and hydrometallurgical routes or both combined methods can be developed to treat secondary materials such as lead ash, leach residues etc. By comparison the hydrometallurgical processes are often considered more eco-friendly.Some chloride leaching processes for recovering lead have been employed using either NaCl, or MgC2 and CaCl2, or FeCl3 [1] The effectiveness of the brine leaching method is based on the formation of complex metal chlorides in concentrated chloride solutions [2] Similarly, Other metals such as zinc, cadmium and copper contained in the flue dust are often treated with sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, ammonium solution and sodium hydroxide etc. as lixiviants [3] The metals from leach solutions thus has been obtained by precipitation, ion exchange, solvent extraction or replacement [4]"

Jan 1, 2014

By Jie Ma, Bo Wang, Jieyu Zhang, Jian Zhao, Guangxin Wu, Shunli Zhao

"Nucleation and growth model based on a 3D CAFE model, which was incorporated with macro heat transfer calculation within ProCAST software was used to predict the solidification microstructure of austenitic stainless steel in twin-roll strip casting. The simulation results of solidification microstructure agreed well with experimental results of austenitic stainless steel. The effect of different casting process parameters on the solidification microstructure was simulated. The predicted results show that solidification microstructure is obviously sensitive to superheat and convection heat transfer coefficient. With the increase of superheat, the grain density decrease and the proportion of columnar crystal increase. In addition, the proportion of columnar grains increases when convection heat transfer coefficient increases. Thus, it was demonstrated that the solidification microstructure evolution of twin-roll strip casting could be predicted reasonably by using this model.IntroductionNear-net-shape casting technology is an important research area in the iron and steel industry today. Twin-roll strip casting represents a major area of concentration of near-net-shape casting technology. It has been widely used for its outstanding advantages, such as extended solubility of alloying elements, refined solidification microstructure and reduced microsegregation [1]. Furthermore, it is the most environmentally friendly, energy saving, and C02-sensitive way to produce steel strips [2]. Therefore, much attention remains to be paid to this aspect. A lot of published works indicated that the solidification microstructure of twin-roll thin strip has obvious effect on the thin strip properties [3, 4]. For the accurate control of parameters of the process are made difficult due to the complicated process and the multi-fold factors, great attentions have been paid to numerical simulations to provide insight into the solidification behaviors of the thin strip formed by twin-roll strip casting [5, 6].Simulations of casting solidification can provide a method to predict microstructure and to improving strip quality by controlling the process parameters."

Jan 1, 2014

By Cang Daqiang, Bai Hao, Li Ning, Liu Xueting, Lu Xin, Zhao Lihua, Li Hongxu, Wei Wei

"Based on the principle of carbon balance, a model was built to calculate C02 emissions of each process and correspondingly the total course of production in iron and steel making. The data from a typical integrated steelworks in China was applied in the model. The results show that the BF and coking process account for the most emissions. Generally, C02 emissions in integrated steelworks depend on three factors, resources utilization efficiency, energy utilization efficiency and energy consumption structure, which were considered in an equation in this paper. Especially, General Emission Factor (GEF) was proposed to assess the relationship between C02 emissions and energy consumption. The results show that, higher GEF will result in more C02 emissions with the same energy consumption and in iron and steel making, the optimization of energy structure and development of eco-industrial park both have significant benefit on the carbon reduction.IntroductionThe Global Warming resulting from the increase of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs), especially C02, in the atmosphere has become the main reason of global climate change, and the carbon reduction is one of the most important ways for the sustainable development [1]. The iron and steel making is a manufacturing industry based on iron-coal high temperature chemical process, in which plenty of C02 is emitted. According to the data from IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) in 2001, iron and steel making emitted about 650 million tons ofC02 every year, which is the fourth largest industry of the fossil energy consumption [2]. According to the data from EEA (European Enviromnent Agency) in 2006, iron and steel making is the largest source ofC02 emissions, which accounted for about 18% of the total C02 emissions in European manufacturing industry [3].It is estimated that the application of various well developed energy-saving technology, such as Coke Dry Quenching (CDQ), Top Pressure Recovery Turbine (TRT) and Coal Moisture Control (CMC), can make the C02 emissions reduced by 0.5%-3% in iron and steel making, and the further C02 emissions reduction can be achieved if more new energy saving technology is applied, such as sintering plant heat recovery, electricity generation with steam generated from converter and the various by-products gas and the hydrogen making process from COG[4,5]. In addition, the application of membrane separation technology is well expected in iron and steel making [6]. For example, the application of C02 Capture and Storage (CCS) in blast furnace combined with the Pure Oxygen Top Gas Recycled BF (TGRBF) technology can reduce the C02 ennss10ns greatly by about 50%-60% [4].That is, as a kind of C02 end-treatment technology, CCS applied with other technology of C02 recovery would be more meaningful. Actually, reduction of the C02 emissions by changing the structure of energy consumption and raw materials with new process of iron and steel making, such as direct reduction process or smelting reduction process [4,7,8], is the trend of ferrous metallurgical engineering, which is regarded as a kind of source-treatment technology. In this sense, source-treatment technology is more pivotal for the solution of carbon reduction in the future than the current popular energy saving technology. Hence, it is necessary to build the C02 emissions model based on the iron and steel making process and evaluate the relationship between the energy saving and C02 emission reduction."

Jan 1, 2012

By Chetan P. Malhotra

This paper describes an online control system and simulation environment for reheating furnaces. The system can be configured for implementing manual control as well as automatic control using either look-up tables or online model predictions. The simulator is also used for offline generation of optimized normal operation and delay setpoints for look-up tables and generating ideal heating curves for model-based control. Finally, it is employed to compare the performance of the above control strategies over a typical period of operation of a pusher-type reheating furnace. Keywords: Reheating furnace, control strategy, model-based control

Jan 1, 2003

By W. G. Davenport

Chapters 7,8and 9 calculated three combinations of: blast composition (mass% O2, mass% N2) oil quantity per tonne of concentrate blast temperature that will steadily produce molten 65% Cu matte from pure chalcopyrite-concentrate. The combinations are:

Jan 1, 2001

By H. Sieber

Multilayer samples of tantalum and aluminum with the composition of Al-25Ta were prepared by cold rolling of elemental foils. The microstructure and phases were characterized by XRD, SEM and TEMISAED and the reactive phase formation was examined by DSC and DTA measurements in multilayer foils rolled for different deformation levels. The rolling procedure yields a decrease of the Ta particle size in the Al matrix and also results in the formation of a multilayer structure with a thickness of the elemental foils down to 200 nm in average. No phase formation is observed during the cold rolling procedure. While XRD and DSC measurements show no phase formation up to the melting of aluminum for samples rolled up to 40 F&R (fold and rolling) passes, in samples rolled for 50 or more F&R passes a first phase formation reaction yield an interfacial layer of TaAl3. Contrary to former studies in the investigated cold rolled Al- 25Ta multilayers the reaction starts at temperatures as low as about 340°C. The first stages of the reaction are associated with two exothermic maxima, that increase in amplitude and shift to lower temperatures with increasing number of F&R passes. At higher temperature the TaA13 reaction layer thickens very sluggishly and yields a third exothermic maxima at about 600°C. Isothermal DSC scans show the reaction is not finished for samples containing elemental particles larger than 1 pm after annealing at 550°C for 5h. In all the investigated samples no Al- Ta phase other than Tad3 was observed to grow for heat treatments up to 800°C. Multilayer samples heated up to 1400°C show a morphology consisting of small AITa2 particles embedded in a single phase TaA13 matrix. The multilayer microstructure and reaction product morphology are characterized by SEM and TEM investigations in cross-section and plan view geometry.

Jan 1, 1998

By Niko Hellstén

To capture efficiently the valuable trace metals from nickel slag using electric furnace, it is important to study their distributions between the slag and metallic phases in the furnace. It is impossible to calculate accurately these distributions without experimental measurements. Therefore, in this work, selected trace metal distributions and phase equilibria between K2O containing iron-silicate slags and a metallic Ni-Fe-Cu alloy in nickel slag cleaning furnace conditions were studied. The experimental method developed and applied during the work, involved a modified quenching technique that included equilibration of the samples in semi-sealed quartz ampoules in an inert atmosphere and metallic Fe saturation. The use of the semi-sealed quartz ampoule prevents the escape of volatile elements from the sample during equilibration. Chemical compositions of the phases and the trace elements were analysed by EPMA. From the measured compositions, the trace metal distribution coefficients between the molten Ni-Fe-Cu alloy and slag were calculated.