Bauxite residue has been continuously produced since the development of the alumina/aluminium industry in the late nineteenth century - and the global inventory is estimated to be around 3,000m. tonnes at the end of 2010 (Power et al, 2009) - and growing at approximately 120m. tpa. This makes bauxite residue one of the largest industrial waste streams in modern society - and highlighting the importance of effective storage and remediation programmes.
The chemical and physical properties of the bauxite residues are determined by the nature of the bauxite and the effect of the Bayer process, used to produce alumina from bauxite ore. This will be influenced by the technology and operating procedures at individual refineries, in particular, the moisture content and pH value of the material being discharged from the production phase - two key factors for the future management of the residue material and the storage area.