LANJIGARH (KALAHANDI) : Vedanta Refinery here has set up the first automatic red mud powder plant after developing the technology in-house. Red mud, the slurry waste of aluminium refineries, is a big challenge for the industry and concern for environmentalists.
The technology developed by Vedanta helps the refinery save caustic consumption by 10 to 13 kg per ton of alumina, minimise land requirement for waste disposal by 40 to 50 per cent, and do away with wet red mud storage, an environmental hazard.
Vedanta is also converting another risk-bearing waste product, fly-ash, to cement-free green concrete that has been named Cold Setting Geo-Polymer Concrete. It sets fast in ambient conditions, consumes less water compared to normal concrete, minimises labour cost and removes threats associated with ash ponds.
The company’s innovative initiatives also include a bio-gas plant that consumes the plant’s organic waste to produce bio-gas used for multiple purposes. All waste products including water is recycled. Vedanta Limited, Lanjigarh, is the country’s first alumina refinery to have adopted this policy.
Besides, the unit has taken up several other initiatives such as Vanadium sludge recovering, usage of fly ash and lime grit for brick manufacturing, ESP at both power plant and Calciner, Bag filter at Alumina handing plant, dry fog system at transfer points of bauxite handling area and coal handling plant and continuous ambient air quality monitoring in and around the plant premises.