Red mud thickener statistical model in MATLAB system identification toolbox

Abstract

The process of red mud thickening and cleaning is a bottleneck of the alumina production. The existing automated systems of thickening process control are intended for the stabilization of parameters of primary process loops of thickeners. The relevant area of scientific research is making up and upgrade of the models and systems for the control of the thickening process under the model. The paper presents a model of a red mud thickener obtained on the basis of archive manufacturing data in the software environment MATLAB with the help of System Identification Toolbox. The measured parameters were the feed pulp consumption rate in the thickener, flocculant flow rate, thickened product consumption from the thickener’s cone and the thickened product density. The model allows predicting the density of a thickened product from the thickener cone. As an industrial prototype of red mud the authors used the mud from Ural Aluminum Plant, as a flocculant – Cytec Industries, series HX-3000.