Researchers in Limerick say a tie-in with a mineral processor will bring the benefits of world-class work. Dick Ahlstrom reports
Industrial research partners can make valuable contributions to the third-level research sector, provided of course you can find them. The University of Limerick has landed a hefty one 20 miles down the Shannon in the form of Aughinish Alumina.
The two last week announced a joint research initiative worth 5.2 million. The five-year deal will support 32 researchers at the university and build on its earlier €15 million investment in research capacity provided via the Higher Education Authority's programme for research in third-level institutions.
The university's vice-president for research, Prof Vincent Cunnane, is delighted with the deal, an arrangement that will provide real world research activity to the benefit of the university's research academics and students.
The company is a big investor in research, spending about 2 per cent of turnover on improving its mainstream chemical processes that convert raw bauxite to pure alumina. This in turn is the material smelted to become aluminium. "We are taking a significant amount of their research budget," says Cunnane.
The investment will be ramped up from an initial €250,000 last year to 500,000 this year and then by €1.2 million a year to the target 5.2 million.
It grew from quite small research beginnings, says Cunnane. When the Canadian giant Alcan sold Aughinish to the Glencore group it took greater control over its research activity, he says. "We got involved in a number of projects with them."
The relationship got bigger and more individual departments and academics joined the effort. This new deal will coordinate the overall activity and simplify the lines of contact between company and university.
There are two key areas of research involved in the relationship: the Bayer process, which converts bauxite to alumina, and the use of computational fluid dynamics to improve productivity at the plant.
It will involve chemists, mechanical and chemical engineers and other researchers, says Cunnane.
"The important thing is on the chemical side and the design side. Aughinish has already made changes on the basis of information flowing from UL. We are having an impact."
Research has made important contributions to activity at Aughinish, according to Martin Fennell, a research director for the company.
Established about 20 years ago and employing 470 permanent and 200 contract staff, the plant initially processed 800,000 tonnes of alumina a year.
The company has more than doubled that throughput without making significant changes to the plant, says Fennell.
"Research would have a big part in increasing our productivity further. The target is 1.8 million tonnes within two years."
Fluid dynamics is an important research area, "looking at how particles and fluids interact, trying to extend the life of parts of the plant".
The process involves dissolving the bauxite in a caustic solution at high pressures and at 255 degrees.
The solid wastes are moved out of solution and the alumina is then crystallised out of the mix.
The University of Limerick's contribution will be on how the fluid-solid mix moves through the plant and on how new materials might improve the life of exposed surfaces.
There will also be continuing efforts to improve productivity using research expertise at the university.