In the production of aluminium, a key ingredient is Calcined Petroleum Coke (CPC), which is generated by heating/ calcining raw petroleum coke at temperature ranging between 1200 and 1350 degrees Celsius into rotary kilns. At the high temperature, the excessive moisture in the raw petroleum coke resultant from the delayed coking of residues obtained from oil refinery's crude oil distillation units is removed, residual hydrocarbons are released and coke's crystalline structure is modified. This entire process results in a product that has low sulfur content, no metallic impurities and is more electrically conductive and dense. The resultant CPC is then left to cool down, so that it can be handled by personnel with ease. Aluminium smelter anodes for the smelting industry can only be produced using CPC; there is no substitute of this raw material till date.
Around 0.4 tons of calcined petroleum coke is required for the production of a ton of aluminium. Aluminium industry is the largest consumer of calcined petroleum coke, followed by steel, plain, plastic, brick and food industries. It is also used in the production of titanium dioxide (TiO2).
