Study on the Intensification of the Boron-Rich Slag Subsection Cooling Process

Abstract

A subsection cooling process is used to selectively precipitate suanite from boron-rich slag, which initially requires a relatively high cooling rate followed by a low cooling rate. The cooling rate and homogeneity affect the crystal growth of the precipitated phase. Different structure intensification approaches, including adding cold slag and applying fins, are effective for improving the reaction. In this work, a numerical simulation of the subsection cooling process was carried out. The temperature distribution and cooling rate distribution were studied. Fast cooling under the conditions of adding cold slag and applying fins yielded centralized cooling rates of 6.3 °C min⁻¹ and 5.3 °C min⁻¹, respectively, with standard deviations of 27.5 and 19.7 °C min⁻¹; the corresponding values of the traditional cooling process are 2.6 °C min⁻¹ and 20.4 °C min⁻¹, respectively. The results show that cold slag is better for increasing the cooling rate than fin slag, but using fins ensures that the cooling process is more homogeneous. Considering the combined effects of different arrangements, applying fins is determined to be the better choice.