The challenge of digitalising lead smelting with technology elements

Technology elements (e.g. Te, Se, Ge) are crucial to the creation of complex products, e.g. photovoltaic cells, which also drive the circular economy. However, these elements introduce complexity when the waste materials (slags, flue dusts or electronic wastes) that contain them are treated in lead smelters. This strategy of treating wastes in lead smelters is followed to utilise existing infrastructure as far as possible. In order to address the complex metallurgy, a dynamic model of the furnaces that are operative in lead metallurgy is required. This project focuses on the laboratory measurements of thermodynamic and kinetic parameters that will be used to create a dynamic model of a Top Submerged Lance furnace.