Dealing with Spent Refractory Materials

The disposal of spent refiactory materials has become a major problem for metals producers. The main issue surrounding refractory disposal is the elimination of the hazardous components of refractories, most commonly chrome-bearing materials and fluoride and cyanide in spent pot-liners. The various approaches to pollution prevention involve re-design to eliminate or significant reduction in wastes, recycling or reuse of the materials, and the least valuable approach, abatement. In the present work, the cunent status of spent refractory disposal is related to the various pollution prevention approaches.