Processing of Alumina Refinery Waste: Red Mud

Supply chain management

Page 1 of 24

PREFACE
Red mud is a harmful waste to the environment generates during refining of bauxite
to yield alumina.

As the percentage of alumina found in bauxite ore is generally

between 30-50%, approximately one to two tons of red mud is generated for every
ton of alumina produced. Being harmful and produced in large quantities, red mud
poses a huge environmental challenge for disposal.
Conventionally, red mud produced is pumped into clay-lined dams or dykes, and
allowed to dry naturally. Thus, for the conventional disposal of red mud requires
large open land. It causes additional problems especially for refineries with limited
land space. Now a days, it stacked by using red mud filter press. It is an expensive
and medium term solution, may pose serious problem for long term sustainability.
Over the years, there have been several attempts are made to find alternate use of
red mud and still no commercially viable route has been established to process the
red mud in proportion to its bulk generation.

The most promising and widely

tested process is neutralization of red mud and returning it to soil as a harmless

material.
As part of one more attempt, experiments are carried out for neutralizing the red
mud generated in one of the Refinery of Hindalco Industries Limited, situated in
Odisha. In the said attempt, series of experiments were conducted by using industry
effluent & indigenous resources and found that in some of the experimental runs
pH of red mud lowered to the range 7.5 to 8.5 from 11.

Page 2 of 24

Table of Contents
PREFACE.............................................................................................................................................. 2
BACKDROP.......................................................................................................................................... 4
ALUMINA MANUFACTURING PROCESS .................................................................................... 5
NARRATIVE INCIDENCE.................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
A GREENFIELD REFINERY .......................................................................................................... 12
HUMAN PROCESS INTERVENTIONS (External) .......................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
STRATEGIC INTERVENTIONS (Internal) ...................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
CONFRONTATION TO COLLABORATION .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
ACHIEVEMENT & ACCOLADES..................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................... 24

Page 3 of 24

BACKDROP
What is "Red Mud"?
"Red Mud" is called a by-product/waste that derives from the alumina producing
industries. It is called "Red" because usually has a red color (due to iron oxides)
and "Mud" because it is a slurry. It is often also named "Bauxite Residue" whereas
proprietary names of processed Red Mud can be found, such as "Bauxsol"
(Virotec),

"Cajunite"

(Kaiser

Aluminium),

"Bauxaline"

(Aluminium

Pechiney),

"Ferroalumina" (Aluminium de Grece) etc.

Is it toxic?
In general, the potential for danger to human health and the environment is low
and the material is classified as non-toxic and non-dangerous. However, toxicity
should be related to the disposal method practiced and there is always a possibility
of (heavy) metals leaching if the appropriate actions are not followed.
Is it radioactive?
Red Mud derives from bauxite and has typically twice the concentration of natural
radionuclides found in parent mineral. Therefore, Red Mud, can be regarded as a
Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (TENORM). In one
reference* [W. Kurdowski, F. Sorrentino, in "Waste Materials Used in Concrete
Manufacturing",

pp.

290-308,

Edited

by

Satish

Chandra,

William

Andrew

Publishing/Noyes, 1997], it is reported that Jamaican bauxite and the corresponding

Jamaican RMs contain levels of U238 and Th232 significantly greater than those
found in most other local soils. The same source refers that the mean specific
activity of Ra226, Th232 and K40 in RM is 477, 705, and 153Bq/Kg. In all cases,
these values should be seen only as indicative since it is obvious that the final
values would depend on the bauxite used.
How we dispose Red Mud now?
There

are

number

of

ways.

Conventional

disposal

methods

involve

the

construction of clay-lined dams or dykes, into which Red Mud is simply pumped
and allowed to dry naturally. As an alternative, dry disposal, involving enhanced
dewatering and evaporative drying is also used, whereas in a few occasions sea
disposal takes place.

Page 4 of 24

What are the most promising uses for Red Mud?

By regarding as promising a use that can absorb substantial quantities and promote
added value to Red Mud, we believe that the metallurgical, cement and traditional
ceramic industries are highly likely to offer a solution.
Why so far don't we use Red Mud in industrial process?
The main reason is that the proposed processes are usually not economically
viable, whereas in many cases technological limitations further limit such a potential.
In view of the tendency for reformation to more strict environmental policies, it is
more likely that industrial processes will be implemented to absorb Red Mud.
Scope
Working in the utilization of Red Mud, we realized soon that:
Production of Red Mud is a global problem
Technologically and economically sound development of a process for Red Mud
utilization seems possible
The dissemination of results between different research teams, industries is not
effective
The society is in general not aware of the Red Mud problem
It is one among our promising attempts to dispose the bauxite residue in the
environment without disturbing the ecological balance. We hope that this effort will
lead to the development of a sustainable solution for this global problem of
aluminum industry.

ALUMINA MANUFACTURING PROCESS

Red Mud is produced during the Bayer Process. With this process, we can extract
the aluminum (oxy) hydroxides from bauxites and get alumina, which eventually can
be smelted and give aluminum.
Bayer Process
In 1888, Karl Josef Bayer developed and patented a process, which has become
the cornerstone of the aluminum production industry worldwide. The Bayer process,
as it has become known, is used for refining bauxite to smelting grade alumina
(aluminum oxide), the precursor to aluminum. Typically, depending upon the quality
of the ore, between 1.9 and 3.6 tonnes of bauxite is required to produce 1 tonne
of alumina.

Page 5 of 24

The Bayer process is a cyclic one and is often called Bayer cycle. It involves four
steps: digestion, clarification, precipitation, and calcination

[Source: http://www.specialtyaluminas.alcan.com/gardanne/webgardannev2.nsf/vwUrl/MondeAlumine_Bayer_VI]
Digestion
In the first step, bauxite is ground, slurried with a solution of caustic soda (sodium
hydroxide), and pumped into large pressure tanks called digesters, where the ore is
subjected to steam heat and pressure. The specific conditions depend on the
quality of bauxite used (i.e. the type of aluminum (oxy) hydoxides present. The
sodium hydroxide reacts with the aluminous minerals of bauxite to form a saturated
solution of sodium aluminate; insoluble impurities, called red mud (RM), remain in
suspension and are separated in the clarification step. The following reactions
describe this step:
Clarification
Following digestion, the mixture is passed through a series of pressure-reducing
tanks (called blow-off tanks), where the solution is flashed to atmospheric pressure.
The next step in the process is to separate the insoluble red mud from the sodium
aluminate solution. Coarse material (e.g., beach sand) is removed in crude cyclones
called sand traps. Finer residue is settled in raking thickeners with the addition of
synthetic flocculants, and solids in the thickener overflow are removed by cloth

Page 6 of 24

filters. These residues are then washed, combined, and discarded. The clarified
solution

is

further

cooled

in

heat

exchangers,

enhancing

the

degree

of

supersaturation of the dissolved alumina, and pumped into tall, silolike precipitators.
Precipitation
Sizable amounts of aluminum hydroxide crystals are added to the solution in the
precipitators as seeding to hasten crystal separation. The seed crystals attract other
crystals and form agglomerates; these are classified into larger product-sized
material and finer material that is recycled as seed. The product-sized agglomerates
of aluminum hydroxide crystals are filtered and washed to remove entrained caustic
or solution. The following reaction takes place:
Calcination
The agglomerates of aluminum hydroxide are calcined in rotary kilns or stationary
fluidized-bed flash calciners at temperatures in excess of 960C (1,750F). Free water
and water that is chemically combined are driven off, leaving commercially pure
alumina. The following reaction describes this step:
Alumina produced by the Bayer process is quite pure, containing only a few
hundredths of 1% of iron and silicon. The major impurity, residual soda, is present
at levels of 0.2 to 0.6%. In addition to being the primary raw material for producing
metallic aluminum, alumina itself is an important chemical. It is used widely in the
chemical, refractories, ceramic, and petroleum industries.
Refining two tons of bauxite yields about one ton of alumina. UAIL refinery
produces 4000 tons of alumina per day resulting in bauxite residue / red mud @
7000 to 8000 tons per day.

Page 7 of 24

INGREDIENTS OF RED MUD

Red Mud is the insoluble product after bauxite digestion with sodium hydroxide at
elevated temperature and pressure. It is a mixture of compounds originally present
in the parent mineral, bauxite, and of compounds formed or introduced during the
Bayer cycle. It is disposed as a slurry having a solid concentration in the range of
10-30%, pH in the range of 11 and high ionic strength.
A chemical analysis would reveal that RM contains silica, aluminum, iron, calcium,
titanium, as well as an array of minor constituents, namely: Na, K, Cr, V, Ni, Ba, Cu,
Mn, Pb, Zn etc. The variation in chemical composition between different RMs
worldwide is high. Typical values would account:
Fe2O3
Al2O3

30-60wt%
10-20wt%

SiO2

3-50wt%

Na2O
CaO
TiO2

2-10wt%
2-8wt%
trace-25wt%

(Source: The International Aluminum Institute, modified for the TiO2 content).

RM is a very fine material in terms of particle size distribution. Typical values would
account for 90 volume % below 75m. The specific surface (BET) of RM is around
10m2/g.
Red Mud Disposal
The disposal of RM remains a major problem. Reports on this issue in the open
literature seem scarce. Below you can find some general information about the
disposal of Red Mud as well as the common practice in the USA, India, China,
Japan, Spain, France and Greece.
In a research by Hind et al. in 1999, it is reported that conventional disposal
methods have revolved around the construction of clay-lined dams or dykes, into
which the RM slurry is simply pumped and allowed to dry naturally. The design and
construction of such residue impoundments has varied considerably over the years
[B. Salopek, J. Strazisar, 1993], with disposal practices generally dependent upon the

Page 8 of 24

nature of the immediate environment. The authors, note that the operation of these
conventional disposal areas was simple and inexpensive; however the potential
impact on the surrounding groundwater and environment, and difficulties associated
with surface rehabilitation, forced significant changes in disposal practices [D.J.
Cooling, D.J. Glenister, 1992]. This led to the construction of doubly sealed
impoundments, incorporating a polymeric membrane as well as clay lining, and
drained lakes, having a drainage network incorporated in the lining material, have
subsequently seen widespread use. Drained disposal systems have been found to
reduce the threat of the residue to the environment, while also increasing storage
capacity as a result of better residue consolidation [L.K. Hudson, 1982]. As an
alternative, dry disposal of bauxite residue, involving enhanced dewatering and
evaporative drying, has also been found to further decrease environmental risks and
lower overall disposal costs [D.J. Cooling, D.J. Glenister, 1992].
In another report by Agrawal et al., it is reported that out of 84 alumina plants all
over the world, only seven are still practising the sea disposal in a planned manner
because of scarcity of land.
One patent on the disposal of RM has been also granted to W. M. Gerald. The title
of the patent is Treatment and disposal of red mud generated in the Bayer
Process, AU701874. The inventors propose a process that produces a RM cake low
in caustic and alumina concentration permitting environmentally friendly disposal.
Quite recently, the Virotec International Ltd. (Australia), announced a treatment
process for RM that renders the material safe for a variety of applications. The
method is based on the use of seawater, which allows the conversion of soluble
alkalinity (above all from sodium hydroxide) into low soluble minerals (essentially
Ca and Mg hydroxides, carbonates and hydrocarbonates). The pH of RM is also
reduced and can be decreased down to pH < 9. This technology is patented and
several

products

with

the

name

Bauxsol

are

available.

study

on

the

environmental behaviour of RM processed with the above technology is also

available [C. Brunori et al., 2004]. More information on the patented treatment, can
be found elsewhere [H. Genc-Fuhrman et al, 2003, H. Genc-Fuhrman et al, 2004, H.
Genc-Fuhrman et al, 2004] and the web site of Virotec.
Page 9 of 24

United States of America

"Red and brown muds are precipitated from a caustic suspension of sodium
aluminate in a slurry and routed to large on-site surface impoundments known as
red and brown mud lakes. In these lakes, the red and brown muds settle to the
bottom and the water is removed, treated, and either discharged or reused. The
muds are not removed, but are accumulated and disposed in place. The muds dry
to a solid with a very fine particle size (sometimes less than 1m). Red muds from
bauxite refining are generated at four facilities. The fifth facility, Alcoa in Bauxite,
Arkansas, generates a residual that is different in color and is commonly called
brown mud. The only difference in the operations generating the two varieties of
mud is that red muds at Alcoa/Bauxite are sintered and leached to recover
additional sodium aluminate, which changes the color of the material but does not
substantially change the chemical characteristics of the waste. Therefore, for
purposes of this report, the waste generated at all five facilities, including the brown
muds, will be referred to as red muds. Red muds contain significant amounts of
iron (20 to 50 percent), aluminum (20 to 30 percent), silicon (10 to 20 percent),
calcium (10 to 30 percent), and sodium (10 to 20 percent). Red muds may also
contain trace amounts of elements such as barium, boron, cadmium, chromium,
cobalt, gallium, vanadium, scandium, and lead, as well as radionuclides..."
"...Non-confidential waste generation rate data were reported for red muds by all
five bauxite refining facilities. The aggregate industry-wide generation of red mud
wastes by the five facilities was approximately 2.8 million metric tons in 1988,
yielding a facility average of nearly 564,000 metric tons per year. Reported annual
generation rates ranged from 26,000 to 1.2 million metric tons per facility, though
the facility generating the least waste, Ormet/Burnside, produced very little alumina,
accounting for only about 1 percent of domestic production. The next lowest
reported annual generation rate was 190,000 metric tons. The sector-wide waste-toproduct ratio was 0.69 in 1988; waste-to-product ratios for individual facilities
ranged from 0.40 to 1.05. The impoundments that receive the muds typically have a
surface area of between 44.6 and 105.3 hectares (110 and 260 acres), although
one impoundment is 10.1 hectares and another is almost 1,300 hectares. The depth
Page 10 of 24

of the impoundments range from 1 to 16 meters (3 to 52 feet), with an

impoundment average of 7 meters. As of 1988, the quantity of muds accumulated
on-site at the 5 facilities ranged from 500,000 to 22 million metric tons per facility,
with an average of 9.7 million metric tons per facility."
India
Agrawal et al. provide a table, where the details of the RM disposal practices, after
Prasad PM et al. at the Indian alumina plants are summarised:

Source: A. Agrawal, K.K. Sahu, B.D. Pandey, Solid waste management in non-ferrous
industries in India, Resources, Conservation and Recycling 42 (2004) 99120).
Reprinted with permission from Elsevier.
Below, on the left you can see a picture from a red mud disposal lake in the vicinity of Kashipur region
of Orissa, India. Please follow the link and get informed about the people of Kashipur. On the right,
you see a landfill where dry disposal has been taking place. The area is regularly sprayed with water
to reduce dust problems.

Page 11 of 24

Figure 1 Dry Stacking of Red Mud

Figure 2 Red Mud Disposal by Utkal Alumina in Kashipur Block

The pond of NALCO factory in Damandjodi (India) is presented. The slurry has a composition of 45%
liquid and 55% solids. Output of Red Mud is 200 t/hour (solids). In the right picture, we see an
overview of the 212 hectares pond. There is about 20 million tons of waste products accumulated.

Figure 3 Red Disposal of by Nalco Damanjodi

China
China things appear to be slightly different. In a research by Fei Peng et al., it is
reported that most of the RM disposal is in landfill, however there is a precentage
close to 10% of RM that is being recycled for further metal extraction or as a raw
material for brick probuction. The authors cite a number of works published [H.Z.
Xu, Gold 17 (1996), pp. 1721 (in Chinese), S.W. Yang, Y.H. Cao and Q. Li,
Conservation and Utilization of Mineral Resources 6 (1999), pp. 4649 (in Chinese),
D. Luo and J. Liu, China Mining 11 (2002), pp. 5053 (in Chinese)]

Japan
In Japan, majority of RM is deposited into the ocean after neutralization [J. Hyuna
et al., 2004]. However, J. Hyuna et al also reports that aluminum manufacturing

Page 12 of 24

companies in Japan have developed pretreatment techniques for bauxite before the
Bayer process to reduce the amount of RM discharged (Japan Patent No. Heisei 6340934, 1994 and Japan Patent No. Heisei 7-47301, 1995).

France
We have limited information. The practise used to be sea disposal, at least in some
cases, but we speculate that this has changed in view of the new European
legislation.
The following two pictures present disposal ponds. The pictures have been found in
the pdf file "La Bauxaline", issued by (former) Pechiney for the plant in Gardanne.
This disposal method is referred as "lagooning" in the text.

Figure 4 Red Mud Disposal in France

Greece
There is only one alumina industry in Greece. The situation concerning the disposal method is
changing. Up to now (2006) Red Mud, is discharged through a pipe line at the sea of Antikyra Bay. A
new project, involving high pressure filtering and dry disposal and reuse of Red Mud, is under
implementation. Information on some aspects of the up to now practised disposal of Red Mud is
available at the works of S.P. Varnavas, P.P. Achilleopoulos, 1995 and S.E. Poulos et al., 1996. For
information on the new adopted solution, please go to News (date 25/04/2006).
Recently, they started doing Rehabilitation of Abandoned Bauxite Surface Mines Using Alumina Red
Mud as Filler

Figure 5 Disposal of Red Mud in Sea by Greek Refinery

Page 13 of 24

The High Pressure Filter Press installation and (right) the dry Red Mud, stacking is a recent technique
being used by so many refineries to increase the life of the red mud pond.

Figure 6 Red Mud Filter Press & Stacking of Dry Red Mud

Red Mud Applications:

Utilization of RM has been a subject of major scientific research. An astonishing
high number of potential uses has been reported in the literature or patented. For
the decade 1967-1977 only, there have been cited 193 published papers and
patents [A. Kontopoulos et al]. The various uses include metallurgical ones (iron and
steel production, titania, alumina and alkali, minor constituents recovery), production
of building materials (constructional brick, light weight aggregates, bricks roofing and
flooring tiles, cements etc), catalysis, ceramics (pottery, sanitary ware, special tiles
and glasses, glazes, ferrites) and other miscellaneous direct uses (in waste
treatment, as a filler, as a fertiliser, etc). Reviews on this subject have been also
published.
Building Materials
Among the uses standing out, are those reported on the utilization of RM for
building materials production such as cement, bricks, roofing tiles and glassceramics. The introduction of RM in these processes would be threefold beneficial.
The bulk production of building materials could eliminate the disposal problem. RM
will be considered as a raw material, added value would be given to it and the
economic aspects regarding industrial realization would be more favorable. Finally,
this solution could be employed in most countries and can be regarded therefore
as an easy to implement and universally applicable.

Page 14 of 24

BACKGROUND
Red mud is a toxic waste product produced during refining of bauxite to
yield alumina. Alumina produced is used as a raw material for obtaining
aluminum by the HallHroult process. As the percentage of alumina
found in bauxite ore is generally between 30-50%, approximately one to
two tons of red mud is generated for every one ton of alumina produced.
Being toxic and produced in large quantities, red mud poses a huge
challenge for disposal.
Conventionally, red mud produced is pumped into clay-lined dams or
dykes, and allowed to dry naturally. The operation of these conventional
disposal areas is simple and inexpensive, but has significant impact on the
environment. Moreover, such conventional method requires large open
land for disposal of red mud that causes additional problems especially for
refineries with limited land space.
There have been several attempts made to neutralize red mud and return it
to soil as a harmless material. Chinese patent application No. CN101816280
for example describes a process wherein red mud and molasses alcohol
waste liquid are mixed together and fermented in presence of anaerobes in
a cement tank for obtaining soil suitable for disposal. However, the process
requires additional equipment and is not suitable for large scale
deployment.
Therefore, there is a need for a method for processing red mud to obtain
processed red mud that may be disposed without causing any
environmental hazard. Moreover, such method should be easy to carry out
and be industrially viable.
DISCRIPTION
The present disclosure generally relates to a method for processing red
mud.
As used herein, red mud, or bauxite residue, is a waste by-product
produced when bauxite is refined to produce alumina. The red mud
generally has a pH in the range of 11 to 10.8.
The method for processing red mud comprises mixing red mud with acidic
soil and spent wash from sugar distillery to obtain processed red mud.

Page 15 of 24

Acidic soil as used herein refers to soil having a pH in the range of 4.8 to
6.1.
Spent wash from sugar distillery as used herein means raw liquid
effluent produced from sugar industries and/or distilleries producing ethyl
alcohol from various raw materials especially molasses derived from cane
sugar. Such spent wash contains carbonic acid in addition to other byproducts and has a pH in a range of 3.5 to 4.2 The Raw Spent Wash from
Sugar Distillery herein after is referred to as Spent Wash.
The processed red mud obtained from this process has a neutral or near
neutral pH. Such processed red mud having a neural or near neutral pH
can be disposed without causing any environmental hazard. The processed
red mud may also be mixed with soil to increase soil fertility.
The method for processing red mud comprises of treating red mud with
acidic soil to obtain a mixture of red mud and acidic soil. Dry red mud may
be mixed with dry acidic soil to obtain the mixture of red mud and acidic
soil. Alternatively, for homogeneous mixing red mud and acidic soil are
crushed (in case of lumps, crushing is required) and mixed using water.
The mixture of red mud and acidic soil is then dried. In accordance with
aspect, the mixture of red mud and acidic soil may be allowed to stand/rest
for a predetermined period of time. For example, for 3 to 6 days. The
mixture of red mud and acidic soil obtained has a pH of approximately 9.9.
The red mud and acidic soil are mixed in a ratio from 1: 4.5 to 1:9.
The method further comprises of mixing the mixture of red mud and acidic
soil with spent wash to obtain a wet mixture of red mud, acidic soil and
spent wash. The wet mixture thus obtained is dried to obtain processed red
mud. The wet mixture may be dried till the moisture content of the
processed red mud is reduced to an acceptable level and till the pH of the
processed red mud reaches near neutral before it is returned to the
environment. The mixture of red mud and acidic soil may be mixed with
the spent wash in a ratio in the range of .... to 1:1 vol/vol. (Red Mud:
Acidic Soil: Spent Wash as 1:9:10 vol/vol)
In accordance with an embodiment, the red mud may be washed with
water prior to mixing with acidic soil to obtain washed red mud. Such
washed red mud may then be mixed with acidic soil and spent wash to
obtain the processed red mud.

Page 16 of 24

The following example(s) of the method of processing red mud are

exemplary and should not be understood to be in any way limiting.
Examples:
Ingredients:
Sl. No.

Ingredient Description pH

Remark

1
Red Mud sample from red mud pond
Sample

11.69 Dry Red Mud

Soil sample-1 from a nearby village Kucheipadar, Odisha 6.69

(Upper portion of the land which is not under cultivation) Beneath
the Hill
3

Soil sample-2 from a nearby village Kucheipadar, Odisha 6.01

(The land presently under cultivation) @ 350 m away from hill base

4
Spent Wash
wash)

4.0

Effluent from Sugar Factory (Raw Spent

Experiment No. A
1.
Dry Red Mud was washed with tap water of same volume and dried
in open atmosphere
2.
After washing the red mud, the water (spent water has a pH of 11.5)
is mixed in equal proportion with Industrial effluent
Result:
1.

pH of washed/leached Red Mud = 10.8

2.

pH of water used to wash red mud = 11.5

3.
pH of mixture of Spent water (water used to leach red mud) and
Spent Wash (1:1) = 6.3

Page 17 of 24

Experiment No. B
Leached red mud (pH =10.8) is mixed with soil sample-1 in the ratio of 1:
4.5 (i.e. one part red mud and 4.5 parts soil sample -1 having pH 6.69). For
homogeneous mixing red mud and soil sample are crushed and mixed using
equal volume of tap water. The mixture is dried in open atmosphere for 4
days.

The resultant pH of mixture obtained in Experiment B having red mud and

acidic soil in a ratio of 1: 4.5 is 10

Experiment No. C
Leached red mud (pH =10.8) is mixed with soil sample-1 in the proportion
of 1: 9 (i.e. one part red mud and 9 parts soil sample -1). For homogeneous
mixing red mud and soil sample is crushed and mixed using equal volume
of tap water. The mixture is dried in open atmosphere for 4 days (2- B).

The resultant pH of mixture obtained in Experiment C having red mud

and acidic soil in a ratio of 1: 9 is 9.9.

Experiment No. D
Leached red mud (having pH =10.8) is mixed with soil sample-2 in the
proportion of 1: 4.5 (i.e. one part red mud and 4.5 parts soil sample -2
having pH =6.01). For homogeneous mixing red mud and soil sample is
crushed and mixed using equal volume of tap water. The mixture is dried
in open atmosphere for 6 days.

The resultant pH of mixture obtained in Experiment D having red mud

and acidic soil (Soil Sample-2) in a ratio of 1: 4.5 is 9.64.

Page 18 of 24

Experiment No. E
Leached red mud (having pH =10.8) is mixed with soil sample-1 in the
proportion of 1: 9 (i.e. one part red mud and 9 parts soil sample -1). For
homogeneous mixing red mud and soil sample is crushed and mixed using
equal volume of tap water. The mixture is dried in open atmosphere for 6
days (3 D).

The resultant pH of mixture obtained in Experiment D having red mud

and acidic soil (Soil Sample-1) in a ratio of 1: 9 is 9.285.

Experiment No. F
Leached red mud (having pH =10.8) is mixed with spent wash (pH=4.0) in
the proportion of 1: 1 (on volumetric basis). The mixture is dried in open
atmosphere for 6 days to obtain processed red mud.

The resultant pH of the processed red mud obtained in Experiment F is

9.64.

Experiment No. G
Red mud (having a pH =11.69) is mixed with spent wash (pH=4.0) in the
proportion of 1: 1 (on volumetric basis). The mixture is dried in open
atmosphere for 4 days (similar experiment run, F).

Result: Resultant pH of experiment G (1: 1) = 9.8

Experiment No. H

Page 19 of 24

Leached red mud (having pH =10.8) is mixed with spent wash (pH=4.0) in
the proportion of 1: 1 (on volumetric basis). The mixture is dried in open
atmosphere for 9 days (Similar to run F and G).

Result: Resultant pH of trial run H (1: 1) = 9.4

Experiment No. I
The mixture obtained from Experiment C is mixed with spent wash of
same quantity (volumetric basis) and dried in the open atmosphere for 3
days.
Result: Resultant pH of trial run Experiment I (1: 9:10) = 5.73

Experiment No. J
The mixture obtained from Experiment E is mixed with spent wash of same
quantity (volumetric basis) and dried in the open atmosphere for 3 days.
Result: Resultant pH of trial run I (1:9:10) = 6.38

Experiment No. K
Leached red mud (pH =10.8) is mixed with soil sample-1 in the proportion
of 1: 9 (i.e. one part red mud and 9 parts soil sample -1). For homogeneous
mixing red mud and soil sample are crushed and mixed using equal volume
of tap water. The mixture is dried in open atmosphere for 4 days. The
mixture of red mud and soil sample-1 obtained is mixed with spent wash of
same quantity (volumetric basis) and dried in the open atmosphere for 3
days.
Result: Resultant pH (1: 9:10) = 5.73
Experiment No. L

Page 20 of 24

Leached red mud (having pH =10.8) is mixed with soil sample-1 in the
proportion of 1: 9 (i.e. one part red mud and 9 parts soil sample -1). For
homogeneous mixing red mud and soil sample crushed and mixed using
equal volume of tap water. The mixture is dried in open atmosphere for 6
days.
The mixture obtained is mixed with spent wash of same quantity
(volumetric basis) and dried in the open atmosphere for 3 days.
Result: Resultant pH (1:9:10) = 6.38
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
The method for processing red mud as disclosed allows for processing red
mud in an easy and industrially viable method. The processed red mud
obtained from this process has a pH that is near neutral or neutral. This
allows the processed red mud to be disposed without causing any
environmental hazard. Moreover, the processed red mud when mixed with
the soil may enhance the fertility of soil. Additionally, the processed red
mud obtained with this method has (may) improve(d) cohesiveness among
the red mud crystals (not tested till) due to the addition of spent wash. Due
to the improved cohesiveness the processed red mud is suitable for
construction purpose. Further as the method uses spent wash which is also
an industrial effluent, the disposal of spent wash is also addressed with the
disclosed process.
Pilot Tests: Bricks Manufacturing from Red Mud & Fly Ash
Bricks manufacturing using Red Mud
Date of Starting the Experiment: May 6, 2015

Ingredients:
1. Red Mud (As it is from Red Mud Pond)
2. Locally Available Soil (As in use to manufacture traditional bricks by baking)
3. Fly Ash (As it is from ESP of CPP)
Proportion:
Red Mud Brick No.1 [

] : Red Mud (1 Part) & Local Soil (Ph= 6.8) from

Sarsupadar Chowk (1 Part)

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Red Mud Brick No.2 [ O ] : Red Mud (1 Part) , Local Soil from Sarsupadar Chowk
(1 Part) & Fly Ash (1 Part)

Process Followed:
1. Locally available soil out of which villagers are manufacturing traditional brick
by the method of baking (in Bhatti) is mixed with equal proportion of Red
Mud/Fly Ash by sprinkling water. Mixture soaked for 2-3 hours in open
atmosphere
2. Molded in traditional mold and raw briks (Kaccha eta) dried in open
atmosphere for 3 days.
3. Placed molded raw bricks in bhatti (in which these are fired along with other
traditional raw bricks) for almost 12-14 days.

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Test results of bricks properties manufactured during

demonstration trials at Utkal Alumina International Limited,
Doraguda, Rayagada

Sl . No.

Dry
weight
(kg)

Water
Absorption
(%)

Dry Crushing
Strength
(kg/cm2)

Wet Crushing
Strength
(kg/cm2)

3.200
3.280

14
17

58
64

78
72

Ph

Red Mud Brick No.1

[

Red mud-50%,
Local Soil-50%

Red Mud brick No.2

[ O ]
Red mud- 30%,
Local Soil (Ph. 5.12)- 35%
Fly Ash
35%

3.500
3.680
3.560

12
14
12

82
79
84

78
77
74

Baked Brick
10.45
(Surface)
10.56 (Core)

Observations:
1. Density of the red mud bricks of mix composition 1 [+] found higher than
traditional bricks & composition 2 [O], found higher than traditional bricks
but lower that 1 [+].
2. Strength of 1 [+] found lower than traditional bricks & & composition 2 [O],
found higher than traditional bricks.
3. Bricks of composition 1 [+] & 2 [O] are found to be having surfaces similar
to traditional bricks.
4. CCS
5. The bricks after breaking are found non-uniform distribution of ingredients
(especially, in brick 1 [+]) in the mixing which has resulted in variation of
crushing strength.
6. The red mud brick produced on experimental scale (27 bricks) meets the
specification.
Suggestion: Homogeneous mixing with proper water content is essential for
preparation of brick mixture. Variation baking temperature may enhance the
quality of brick with respect to strength and uniformity in size.

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REFERENCES
1. *Ref: Breakdown in in implementing Models of Organization Change, by
Andrew H Van de Ven and Kangyong Sun
2. Interventions in Turnaround Strategy: A Case Study of Riurkela Steel Plant, by
Madhuchanda Mohanty & Priyadarshini Ispita Mishra
3. UAIL, ABG group award documents
4. www.adityabirlagroup.com

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