The experimental flow chart is presented in Fig. 4. The ash from
the pot furnace was quenched and a magnetic separation was carried
out to remove the ferrous metals. The ash samples were dried
at ambient temperature for three days to reduce the moisture level
below 5 wt.%, after which they were sieved to four size fractions:
2 mm, 2–6 mm, 6–20 mm, and +20 mm. A metal detecting sensor
separation and handpicking were employed to recover the aluminum
scraps from the +2 mm fractions. These scraps were evaluated
for the weight, size distribution, and recovery rate. The metallic
aluminum contents in each size of aluminum scraps and 2mm
ash fractions were measured from the hydrogen generated in a
sodium hydroxide solution. The chemical reaction that controls
the hydrogen production is given in Eq. (2) in the literature (Aubert
et al., 2004).