The tapping process is where aluminium flows from a production cell into a tapping crucible. Current monitoring methods for this process involve floor operators using a small peephole or mirrors to check for bath contamination.
According to the scientists, they built a prototype system which replaces the system with a camera and a remote hand-held screen. The new instrument allows the operation to be recorded.
After several field trials, the researchers decided to record and transmit real-time video images of the metal stream as it enters the crucible. Real-time video monitoring was enabled via analogue CCTV wireless transmission and wireless network video streaming.
The images shown on a hand-held colour LCD viewing screen contained enough detail for the tapping operation. The system is still having problems quantifying the level of bath contamination, but the tapping crews seem to find it sufficient.
The research was supported by Alcoa, Comalco (now Rio Tinto Aluminium) and Tomago Aluminium.