Abstract
The two most widely industrialized techniques for aluminum refining are the three-layer electrolytic refining process and the segregation process. The three-layer process uses molten salt electrolysis to produce aluminum of greater than 99.99% purity. The segregation process produces aluminum of 99.98–99.99% purity. Although aluminum refined by the segregation process has a somewhat lower purity than that produced by the other methods, the segregation process has become increasing common since it consumes less energy. Ultrahigh-purity aluminum (99.9999%), which has uranium and thorium impurities reduced to less than 1 ppb, can also be produced.
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Kondo, M., Maeda, H. & Mizuguchi, M. The production of high-purity aluminum in Japan. JOM 42, 36–37 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03220434
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03220434