Institute of Solid State Chemistry of Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Ekaterinburg, Russia:

G. M. Rubinshteyn, Senior Researcher, phone: +7 (343) 374-53-14
L. A. Pasechnik, Senior Researcher
S. P. Yatsenko, Professor, Head of Laboratory
I. N. Pyagay, Senior Researcher

This article shows the analysis of gallium production methods, together with a brief overview of existing gallium production and application. Rapidly progressing electronic industry is the main consumer of gallium compounds. In Russia this metal is produced at the Pikalevo Alumina Refinery, while gallium production at Ural alumina plant has been liquidated. In the world practice, there was applied the electrolysis on mercury cathode or cementation with sodium amalgam. However, nowadays this technology is not used in France and Hungary because of high toxicity of mercury. Cementation and electrocementation on aluminum gallama are widely applied for purified solutions. This method is used as initial technology at the plant in Pavlodar (Kazakhstan). Sorption concentration with subsequent cementation by aluminum gallama was applied at the plant in Nikolaev (Ukraine). The plants, where alkaline aluminate solutions are neutralized by treatment in exhausting furnace gases, use carbonizing concentration of gallium followed by cementation on aluminum gallama. This work reports about the advantages of gallium concentration by electrochemical extraction with carrier on water-cooled solid cathodes from sodium-aluminate Bayer solutions. Construction of electrolyzer with unit capacity of 1000 kg of gallium per year, using a rectifying installation with non-stationary pulse current, was designed. The stages of subsequent cementation finishing and refining of rough gallium via vacuum thermal treatment of the final metal are described. The gallium process flowsheet and hardware scheme are presented. The technology has undergone long-term industrial tests. It makes possible to produce 6N grade gallium and promotes the reduction of concentration of impurities in aluminate solutions.

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