Light Metals 2004 Edited by Alton T.

Tabereaux TMS (The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society), 2004

3-D MODELLING OF THERMAL AND SODIUM EXPANSION IN SODERBERG

ALUMINIUM REDUCTION CELLS*
Yang Sun1, Karl G. Forslund2, Morten Sørlie3, Harald A. Øye1
1
Department of Materials Technology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Trondheim, N-7491, Norway
2
Elkem Aluminium ANS Lista; P.O. Box 128 Farsund, N-4551, Norway
3
Elkem Aluminium ANS Research; P.O. Box 8040 Vågsbygd; Kristiansand S, N-4675, Norway
Keywords: Mathematical model, Thermal expansion, Sodium expansion, Aluminium reduction cell

Abstract A recent study has shown that carbon creeps under electrolytic
conditions [3]. This creep has not been included in the calculation,
A three dimensional transient mathematical model of a Soderberg giving stresses higher than the real stresses.
aluminium reduction cell was developed to study cathode changes
during heat up and early operation by using the ANSYS program. The lining construction (transverse section) of the aluminium
In this nonlinear finite element model, material non-linearity and reduction cell and materials used are shown in Figure 1.
the influence of temperature on the material’s mechanical
properties were taken into account. First thermal field distribution 18
17
and sodium concentration distribution in the cathode carbon block 16
with time were calculated, and then the stress distribution and 15
deformation were calculated and analyzed. Points where the 14
construction should be strengthened and area of high stress are 13
pointed out. It is also shown that thermal excursions and sodium 12
11
expansion can cause a gap under the cathode carbon block, 10
allowing bath to fill the void and reacting with the refractory to 9
crystalline compounds, result in a push-up of the cathode carbon
block that may result in a permanent bottom heave over time. 8

Introduction
In a previous paper, a 2-dimensional stress-strain model of preheat
and early operation for a prototype prebake cell was presented
using the ANSYS program [1]. The influence of thermal
expansion and expansion due to sodium metal penetration into the
cathode were taken into account. A 2-dimensional model has
however the inherent weakness that structural details cannot be
modelled and the collector bar cannot be included. The present
paper extend the model into 3-dimension. Again a prototype cell
(Fig.1) is basis for the calculation. The cell is a Soderberg cell,
and the expansion of the side walls has also been measured for
this cell (Fig.2) [2].
The object of the calculations is:
x To identify high stress areas.
x Investigate need for stress relief in crushable lining.
x Identify need for shell strengthening.
x Study mechanism of lens formation underneath the cathode.
7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Figure 1: Lining construction and materials of the prototype
reduction cell (transverse section)
1. Shell and support structure; 2. Calciumsilicate; 3. Vermiculite;
4. Steel; 5. Refractory bricks; 6. Alumina; 7. Cathode block;
8. Refractory castable; 9. Insulation castable;
10. Carbon filler block; 11. Refractory tile; 12. Vermiculite;
13. Ramming paste; 14. Sidewall carbon; 15. Cryolite;
16. Silicon carbide; 17. Frozen ledge; 18. Alumina.
90
80

70
The cathode blocks used consisted of electrocalcined anthracite
Displacement (mm)

60
with 30% electrographite added and baked to approximately
50
1200ºC. The materials parameters are based on producers date
sheet and studies under electrolytic conditions carried out in this 40

laboratory (Table 1). The parameters have been improved and 30

made more realistic than in the earlier paper [1]. Fig.2 shows a 20
rapid expansion during heat-up and the first 3 days. In order to 10
model this, a high diffusion coefficient of sodium is assumed for 0
the first 3 days and made lower thereafter (Table 1). The low 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400
diffusion coefficient is to artificially account for the lower mass Tim e (day)
transfer coefficient through the aluminium pad which is added
after 12 hours. Figure 2: Gray area: Band of measured Y-direction displacement
of the steel shell (sum of both sides) as a function of time
(transverse direction). Black Line: Calculated expansion.

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 Table 1. Properties of Materials Used in the Aluminium Reduction Cell
Specific Density
Thermal Conductivity Thermal Expansion Elasticity Modulus
Material Heat at 25˚C
(W/m/K) Coefficient (10-6/K) (GPa)
(J/kg/K) (kg/m3)
44.3(100˚C); 41.4(200˚C); 206.8(25˚C);128(400˚C);
1. Steel 459.8 7800 11.7(over 25˚C)
38.5(300˚C); 35.6(over 400˚C) 61(600˚C); 10.5(800˚C)
0.07(200˚C); 0.09(400˚C);
2. Calciumsilicate 840 245 5.5(20˚C–750˚C) 0.054(20˚C–750˚C)
0.10(over 600˚C)
0.155(100˚C); 0.167(200˚C);
3. Alumina 0.182(300˚C); 0.21(500˚C); 850 3900 1(over 25˚C) 10-3(over 25˚C)
0.238(700˚C); 0.25(over 800˚C)
0.17(200˚C); 0.20(400˚C);
4. Vermiculite 800 600 11(20˚C–750˚C) 0.06(20˚C–750˚C)
0.22(over 600˚C)
5. Castable 0.75(over 25˚C) 794 2000 1.875(over 25˚C) 7(over 25˚C)
3.65(200˚C); 4.0(400˚C);
1.23(300˚C); 1.49(600˚C);
6. Refractory 1000 2150 4.35(600˚C); 4.74(850˚C); 20(20˚C–1000˚C)
1.5 (over 900˚C)
5.01(1000˚C)
0.001(200˚C);
2.5(200˚C); 4(400˚C);
0.003(500˚C);
7. Ramming Paste 6(over 30˚C) 1000 1500 3.5(600˚C); -1(800˚C);
4(700˚C);
2.5(1000˚C)
5(1000˚C)
8. Sidewall 7.8(200˚C); 8.4(400˚C); 2.2(200˚C); 3.0(600˚C);
1200 1510 9(25˚C–1000˚C)
Carbon 9.0(over 600˚C) 3.6(1000˚C)
9. Silicon 44(20˚C); 41(200˚C); 4(600˚C); 4.3(800˚C);
710.6 2660 50(20˚C–950˚C)
Carbide 34(400˚C); 28(over 600˚C) 4.6(1000˚C)
10. Insulation 0.24(200˚C); 0.25(400˚C);
1000 1050 10(20˚C–750˚C) 0.09(over 25˚C)
Castable 0.27(600˚C)
210(25˚C); 190(200˚C);
44.3(100˚C); 41.4(200˚C); 120(400˚C);60(600˚C);
11. Collector bar 459.8 7800 11.7(over 25˚C)
38.5(300˚C); 35.6(over 400˚C) 18(750˚C); 10(800˚C);
4.2(900˚C); 3.7(950˚C)
1.36(300˚C); 1.5(500˚C);
12. Side Crust 1410 1957 1(over 25˚C) 6
2.03(700˚C); 2.94(over 900˚C)
M: 1.8(200˚C); 2.5(600˚C);
M*1:12(30˚C-1000˚C); 3.2(1000˚C) M:8*2(25˚C–1000˚C)
1200 1930
P*1:9.5(30˚C-1000˚C) P: 2.7(200˚C); 3.4(600˚C); P: 5*2(25˚C–1000˚C)
13. Cathode 4.0(1000˚C)
Carbon
Sodium saturation: 3wt%;
Sodium Expansion coefficient: ȕM=2.5×10-3; ȕP=3.5×10-3;
Sodium Diffusion Coefficient: 4×10-8m2/s (Day 1-3 after start-up) [4]; 5×10-9m2/s (After 3 days) [5, 6]
*1. M: Extrusion direction; P: Perpendicular to the extrusion direction.
*2. E-Modulus with or without sodium absorption.

Mathematical Modelling Where T is the temperature, U is the density; c is the heat capacity;
q is heat source; t is time; kx, ky and kz are the thermal
Calculation of Thermal Field conductivity in X, Y and Z directions.

The three dimensional transient thermal field can be described by To get a unique thermal field distribution, it is necessary to enter
the following equation: initial and boundary conditions. The initial condition would be a
temperature field T = f0 (x, y, z) when the time is equal to 0, and
w § wT · w § wT · w § wT · wT (1) the boundary conditions were given by the heating curve and the
¨kx ¸  ¨ky ¸  ¨kz ¸q Uc
wx © wx ¹ wy ¨© wy ¸¹ wz © wz ¹ wt coefficient of heat exchange by convection and radiation.

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Calculation of Sodium Concentration Distribution Calculation Results and Analysis

The three dimensional sodium concentration distribution with Heat up

time can be described by the following equation:
The aluminium reduction cell was preheated for 48 hours, and the
w § wC · w § wC · w § wC · wC (2) preheating rate is 35˚C/h from 1 to 6 hours to 235˚C, 12˚C/h from
¨ Dx ¸  ¨ Dy ¸  ¨ Dz ¸Q
wx © wx ¹ wy ¨© wy ¸¹ wz © wz ¹ wt 7 to 24 hours to 450˚C, and 22˚C/h from 25 to 45 hours to 900˚C,
and then kept 900˚C for 3 hours. In the end of the preheating
Where C is the concentration; t is time; Q is the volume source; period, the temperature of cathode carbon block surface was
Dx, Dy and Dz are the diffusion coefficients in X, Y and Z 900˚C.
directions. The amount of sodium metal in a saturated amorphous
carbon block with graphite addition is estimated to be 3.0%(wt). Calculation results after heat up for 48 hours are shown in Figures
According to unpublished work [4], the sodium diffusion 3-9.
coefficient in the carbon block is in the range of 1-7×10-8m2/s.
Figure 3 shows the temperature distribution in the cell after 48
Calculation of Stress and Strain hours preheat. The temperature of cathode carbon block top
surface is 900˚C, and the temperature on the bottom is about
In general, a relation between stresses and strains in presence of 720˚C. The temperature gradient in the cathode carbon block is
external forces acting solely on the surface and in the bulk of large, about 418˚C/m, and a stationary state heat balance in the
elastic anisotropic body is described by generalised Hooke’s law. cathode carbon block is still not reached. The temperature of the
Including thermal expansion and sodium expansion, the three ramming paste adhering to the cathode carbon block is over
dimensional equations for orthotropic material are expanded as 600˚C, so this part is already baked.
follows:
Figure 4 demonstrates that the X-direction displacement
­ P (longitudinal) on the top of bottom blocks is larger than that on
1 P
° Hx V x  yx V y  zx V z  D x ' T  E x ' C the bottom, which is due to the vertical temperature gradient in the
° Ex Ey Ez cathode carbon block. Minus “–” means negative X-direction. The
° P xy 1 P ramming paste between the cathode carbon block was
®H y  Vx  V y  zy V z  D y ' T  E y ' C compressed, and negative X-direction displacement is seen
° E x E y Ez
between the 4 middle blocks. The maximum X-direction
° P xz P 1
°Hz  V x  yz V y  V z  D z 'T  E z 'C displacement is located in Point A, the value is about 3.9mm. In
¯ E x E y E z addition, a rather large X-direction displacement occurs in the
refractory and the vermiculite, because the vermiculite is
(3) relatively soft.
Where ıx, ıy and ız are stresses in X, Y and Z directions; İx, İy Figure 5 shows Y-direction displacement (transverse) of the cell.
and İz are strains in X, Y and Z directions; Ex, Ey and Ez are The maximum Y-direction displacement is located in Point B, the
modules of elasticity; µ is Poisson coefficient; Įx, Įy and Įz are value is about 7.5mm.
thermal expansion coefficients; ȕx, ȕy and ȕz are sodium
expansion coefficients; ǻT is temperature change; ǻC is sodium Figure 6 shows Z-direction displacement (vertical) of the cell.
concentration change. Minus “–” means negative Z-direction, namely downward-
direction in Figure 6, and plus “+” means positive Z-direction,
­J xy W xy G xy namely upward-direction. From Figure 6, it can be seen that the
° (4) maximum downward displacement is located in Point C due to the
®J yz W yz G yz deformation of the steel shell, while the maximum upward
°J W zx G zx displacement is located in Point D, which means that the cathode
¯ zx
carbon block is bent-up. Because the refractory is also bent-up, no
Where IJ is shear stress; Ȗ is shear strain; G is module of shear gap is present under the cathode carbon block.
deformation.
X-direction stress, Y-direction stress and Z-direction stress are
Using the results from temperature field calculation and sodium shown in Figures 7-9, where minus “–” means compression, and
concentration distribution calculation, the stress and strain in the plus “+” means tension. There are large stresses in the collector
aluminium reduction cell can be calculated. bar, steel shell and cradle. Due to the complicated structure of the
steel shell and cradle, the stress distribution is also complicated,
Calculation Content showing compression as well as tension. Because steel has the
largest elasticity modulus of all the materials, very small
The ANSYS program was used to calculate the three dimensional deformations can cause very large stress in steel. Steel shell and
transient mathematical model during heat up and after start-up cradle will expand outward with increasing temperature, and the
(from start-up to 400 days). The following content are included: stress in the cathode carbon block is not very large during this
(1) thermal field and stress-strain calculation during heat up; stage. But larger stress exists in the end cathode carbon block
(2) thermal field and stress-strain calculation after start-up; (Figs. 7-9). On the surface of the cathode carbon block, the X-
(3) sodium concentration distribution calculation after start-up; direction stress reaches 7.8 MPa in the end block due to the
(4) stress-strain calculation due to thermal and sodium expansion thermal expansion and the deformation of the whole cell.
after start-up.

589
 P

Point C
Z Point D
Y X

Figure 3: Thermal field distribution after 48 hours preheat (˚C) Figure 6: Z-direction displacement after 48 hours preheat (mm)
(Deformation enlarged u40)

Point A

Figure 4: X-direction displacement after 48 hours preheat (mm) Figure 7: X-direction stress after 48 hours preheat (MPa)

Point B

Figure 5: Y-direction displacement after 48 hours preheat (mm) Figure 8: Y-direction stress after 48 hours preheat (MPa)

590
Figure 9: Z-direction stress after 48 hours preheat (MPa) Figure 10: Thermal field distribution, 30 days after start-up (˚C)

30 Days after Start-up

Calculation results 30 days after start-up are shown in Figures 10-

14.

Figure 10 shows the temperature distribution in the cell. The

temperature of cathode carbon block bottom is about 900˚C, and
the temperature gradient is about 140˚C/m. Compared with Figure
3, it can be seen that the temperature gradient in the cathode
carbon block as expected decreases with time. From the
calculation results, it was found that a stationary state heat balance
in the cell is reached ten days after start-up.
Gap
30 days after start-up X-direction displacement and Y-direction
displacement of the whole cell increase due to thermal and sodium
expansion. The maximum X-direction displacement is still located
in Point A, the value is 11.4 mm, and the maximum Y-direction
displacement is still located in Point B, the value is 17.7 mm. Figure 11: Z-direction displacement with thermal and sodium
expansion (deformation enlarged ×20),30 days after start-up (mm)
Figure 11 shows Z-direction displacement due to thermal and
sodium expansion. With the sodium uptake, only the cathode
carbon block is expanded and bent-up, so a gap is opened under
the cathode carbon block, the value is about 5 mm. This creates a
good condition for electrolyte deposition under the cathode carbon
block. The bath can penetrate into the gap, react with the
refractory and crystallize.

Larger stresses exist in the cathode carbon block due to the

sodium expansion. The reason is that the sodium uptake only
results in cathode carbon block expansion, while cell shell and
cradle will constrain the cathode carbon block expansion strongly.
The maximum X-direction stress in the cathode carbon block
reaches about 40 MPa (Fig.12), which is beyond the mechanical
strength of the cathode carbon, and can cause the crack in the
cathode carbon block. However in this calculation, creep of the
carbon materials was not considered. Hence the stress in the
cathode carbon block is larger than what is realistic in the real
cell. Experiments have shown that at the electrolysis temperature,
creep can occur in all kinds of carbon materials, and have an Figure 12: X-direction stress with thermal and sodium expansion,
effect on the stress-strain curve of carbon materials [7]. 30 days after start-up (MPa)

591

Part E
Figure 13: Von Mises stress distribution (deformation enlarged
×20), 30 days after start-up (MPa)
Part F
Part G
Figure 14: Von Mises stress distribution (deformation enlarged
×20), 30 days after start-up (MPa)
From Figs. 13 and 14, it can be seen, after start-up, that a large
deformation occurs in the reduction cell. There is large stress
concentration in the steel shell and cradle and collector bars.
Especially, large stress concentration happens in the end cathode
bottom block (Part E in Fig. 13). To decrease the deformation of
the steel shell and the stress concentration in the end cathode
bottom block, part F and G should be strengthened. The corner of
end cathode carbon block can be rounded or chamfered to
decrease the stress concentration. Cathode bottom blocks and
sidewall carbon blocks with smaller E-modulus can be used. In
addition, the bottom block should preferably have a higher
thermal conductivity to decrease the effect of thermal shock, and
low sodium expansion. This may be accomplished by using more
graphitic blocks.
Lens Formation
It is known that a lens consisting of electrolyte, aluminium,
carbide, silicates and reaction products is formed between the
cathode carbon block and the refractory barrier [8]. Such a lens
might be formed very rapidly if liquid aluminium penetrates in
cracks, but it is also formed on a slower scale in a crack-free
cathode. This lens is the major cause for bottom heaving, and
strong heaving may result in cracking of the cathodes.
592
The present calculation showed that a sodium expansion gradient
leads to bend up of the cathode blocks and the creation of a void
underneath where salt can crystallize (Fig.11). This mechanism
will, however, stop when the sodium has penetrated the cathode
fully. Thermal excursions may, however, lead to bend-up during
the life of the cell. A calculation was performed where the metal
pad temperature increased from 960 to 990˚C within 200 seconds.
An approximately 0.1mm gap developed under the cathode. In
reality still larger temperature excursion may occur with larger
voids.
Due to chemical reaction of the electrolyte with carbon and
sodium within the cathode the electrolyte that reaches the bottom
contains of about equal weight amounts of NaF and Na3AlF6, i.e.,
about 10mole% AlF3 [9]. This electrolyte may react with the
refractory and crystallize. Successive temperature excursions
followed by bend-ups may hence lead to a continuous growth of
the lens underneath the cathode.
Conclusion
A three dimensional transient mathematical modeling in
aluminium reduction cells was developed, which is calculated by
using the ANSYS program. From the calculated results, it can be
seen that sodium expansion and thermal excursion are two main
reasons for causing cathode carbon block bent-up. Sodium
expansion causes much larger deformation and stress in the
cathode carbon block than the thermal expansion. The stress in the
cathode carbon caused by both sodium expansion and thermal
expansion can exceed the mechanical strength of the cathode
carbon block, and results in cracking. Stress release by means of
creep in carbon materials will be considered in future calculations.
References
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“Modelling of Thermal and Sodium Expansion in Prebaked
Aluminium Reduction Cell,” Light Metals, (2003), 603-610.
2. J. Hvistendahl, Private Communication.
3. A. Zolochevsky, J. G. Hop, G. Servant, T. Foosnæs and H.
A. Øye, “Creep and Sodium Expansion in a Semigraphtic
Cathode Carbon,” Light Metals, (2003), 595-602.
4. J. G. Hop, “In-situ Properties of Cathode Materials during
Electrolysis during Start-up and Operation” (Internal NTNU
Report, 2002).
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Nora, “Reduction of Sodium Induced Stresses in Hall-Herout
Cells,” Aluminium, 72 (1996), 918-924.
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(Dusseldorf: Aluminium-Verlag, 1994).
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