In order to improve energy efficiency and reduce green house gas emissions, the aluminum smelting industry has been continuously working on reducing both anode effect frequency (AEF) and duration (AED). However, there is still a long way to go to achieve zero anode effect (AE) on very high amperage, low specific power consumption cells due to the added complexity of the process. A new program to quickly terminate AEs has been developed by Light Metals Research Centre, the University of Auckland, in conjunction with the efforts of the Asia Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APP) to facilitate investment in clean technologies and to accelerate the sharing of energy efficient best practices. A pilot project was initiated to test an automatic Anode Effect Termination (AET) program on 400kA cells in Zhongfu, China. This paper demonstrates the success of the new anode effect termination (AET) program in killing AEs on this cell technology without conflicting with normal cell operations. The resulting decrease in average anode effect duration (AED) is demonstrated.
The Integrated Assessment of Black Carbon and Tropospheric Ozone addresses the short-lived cli- mate forcers (SLCFs) that also have an impact on air quality. Its findings on both the state of scientific knowledge and existing policy options to cut emissions come from 50 authors convened by UNEP and WMO. Previous assessments have often studied either the impacts on climate from such pollutants or the direct effects of air pollution on human health and ecosystems, but not both in an integrated manner. This report gives a comprehensive assessment of the multiple benefits of practi- cal measures to reduce emissions of black carbon – a key component of soot – and the gases leading to the formation of tropospheric ozone, especially methane.
Issue of Our Planet, the magazine of the United Nations Environment Programme.
