Casthouse Ventilation Design for the Production of Air-Cooled Aluminium Sows

The Aluminerie Alouette Inc. (AAI) smelter in northern Quebec, Canada recently completed a major plant expansion that includes a new casthouse for the continuous production of low-profile, air-cooled aluminium sows. The radiation and convection heat release of 15 MW to the workplace from the aluminium metal solidification and cooling is significantly higher than that experienced in the traditional water-cooled casting process where the majority of the heat is removed by the cooling water.