Kinetics of Isothermal Dehydration of Gibbsitic Bauxite

The thermal dehydration kinetics of naturally occurring gibbsitic bauxite have been studied using a thermogravimetric method in static air under isothermal conditions. The bauxite sample was characterized by chemical analysis, differential thermal analysis, specific surface area, particle size distribution, X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Kinetics of thermal dehydration were interpreted and correlated using the ICTAC recommended integral isoconversional method and the Guggenheim method. Both rate constants and activation energies at initial and final stages of isothermal dehydration of bauxite were evaluated by Guggenheim method while only activation energies by integral isoconversional method.