REYKJAVIK, Iceland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DT Equipment ehf. (DTE), a leader in the field of in-line compositional analysis for the metal industry, announced today that it has been the recipient of a €1.4 million Horizon 2020 award from the European Commission to advance its first-in-industry technology for real-time control of aluminum smelting and processing.
"We are delighted to announce this award and the recognition that it brings,” commented Sveinn Gudmundsson, CEO of DTE, “We would like to thank the European Commission for recognizing the potential of our solution to meet the challenges of the aluminum smelting industry with respect to optimizing metallurgical performance, cost-efficiency, productivity and quality.”
Operating at a vast scale, aluminum production is a complex, high-tech and hazardous process that involves high-temperature electrolysis of alumina and subsequent refining steps. Throughout this process the aluminum is sampled for elemental analysis to determine further processing requirements to produce metal of appropriate purity and composition. At present, sampling is performed manually, by withdrawing a ladle of molten metal, allowing it to cool and then transferring the cast sample to an on-site laboratory. This is repeated many hundreds of times per day – a laborious, expensive process that delays the feedback loop of production control information, leading to inaccuracy and inefficiency.
DTE’s Element Analyzer (DTE-EA) uses laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to provide an accurate real-time chemical analysis of the main elemental contaminants present in the molten aluminum, without contacting the surface of the metal. No manual handling or laboratory measurements are required. Limit of detection (LOD) is well within working range for elemental analysis in the aluminum industry and error with respect to reference is unprecedented for in situ analysis. While LIBS is used in a wide range of applications, the DTE-EA has been designed and produced by DTE’s industry expert team specifically for continuous operation in the harsh conditions of an aluminum smelter and to take readings directly from the surface of the molten aluminum – a significant challenge, around which the Company has patents pending.
The DTE-EA complements and aims to replace current sampling methods for process and quality control, offering real-time process feedback, substantial energy and process cost savings from faster, more frequent measurements and improved operator safety through limiting the need for human intervention.
DTE will be presenting its analyzer product at the Aluminium 2018 Exhibition from 9-11 October, at Messe Dusseldorf.
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About DT Equipment
DTE, based in Reykjavik, Iceland is focused on next-generation industrial metal production process control, towards Industry 4.0. The Company’s flagship DTE-EA product range provides first-in-industry direct sampling and compositional analysis of molten metal, addressing the high unmet need to complement and replace current slow, expensive and manual methods for process and quality control with real-time, in-line analysis of trace materials. Real-time process feedback offers substantial opportunities, including improved production efficiency, energy and process cost savings from faster, more frequent measurements and improved operator safety through limiting the need for human intervention.
For more information, please visit www.dtequipment.com
About Horizon 2020
Horizon 2020 is the largest ever EU Research and Innovation program with nearly €80 billion of funding available over 7 years (2014 to 2020) – in addition to the private investment that this money will attract. It promises more breakthroughs, discoveries and world-firsts by taking great ideas from the lab to the market. By coupling research and innovation, Horizon 2020 is helping to achieve this with its emphasis on excellent science, industrial leadership and tackling societal challenges. The goal is to ensure Europe produces world-class science, removes barriers to innovation and makes it easier for the public and private sectors to work together in delivering innovation.
For more information: https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/what-horizon-2020
Forward Looking Statements
All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this presentation. The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. All forward-looking statements contained in this presentation are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section.
