Explain extraction of aluminium by hall herolt method
Answers
Explanation:
The Hall-Heroult process is widely used in the extraction of aluminium. In Hall-Heroults process, pure Al2O3 is mixed with CaF2 or Na3AlF6. This results in lowering of the melting point of the mixture and increases its ability to conduct electricity. A steel vessel with the lining of carbon and graphite rods is used.
The carbon lining acts as cathode and graphite act as an anode. When electricity is passed through the electrolytic cell which consists of carbon electrodes oxygen is formed at the anode. This oxygen formed reacts with the carbon of the anode to form carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. In this method of production of aluminium for every 1 kg of Al produced, approximately 0.5 Kg of carbon anode is burnt.Aluminium ions are created at the adverse cathode from the aluminium oxide and then sink down because they are heavier than the cryolite solution. Then, the liquid shape of the aluminium that has sunk to the bottom. On the other side, at the positive anode, the oxygen from the aluminium oxide forms and responds to carbon dioxide CO2 with the graphite carbon.
The overall reaction is:
2Al2O3 + 3C → 4Al + 3CO2
The electrolytic reactions are:
At the cathode:
Al 3+ + 3e– → Al (l)
At the anode:
C (s) + O2- → CO (g) + 2e–
C (s) + 2O2- → CO2 (g) + 4e–
During the process of electrolysis,
Aluminium ions that are positively loaded gain electrons from the cathode and form molten aluminium.
Oxide ions lose anode electrons and form molecules of oxygen
In the electrochemical sequence means reactivity series, aluminium is too big to be removed from its ore by carbon reduction. The required temperatures are too high to be economical.