PROCESS FOR SELECTIVE CHLORINATION OF ALUMINUM OXIDE CONTAINING FEEDSTOCK FOR THE PREPARATION OF ALUMINUM

A carbo-chlorination process is disclosed for selectively producing AlCl3 from an alumina-containing feedstock, comprising introducing the following into a fluidized bed reactor maintained at 600-700° C.: (a) dried and calcined feed stream comprising the alumina-containing feedstock and a carbon feed; (b) chlorinating agent; (c) selectivity agent; (d) dried air; and optionally (e) off-spec AlCl3. The process further includes removing a vapor stream from the reactor in which preferably about 75-80%, of the alumina present in the reactor is converted to AlCl3; and also removing a solid raw pozzolan stream from the reactor, wherein about 90-99% of the silica present in the reactor remains unconverted and exits the reactor through the solid raw pozzolan stream. The vapor stream comprising AlCl3 is purified to create an AlCl3 product stream comprising preferably greater than about 99.99% AlCl3. The raw pozzolan product is classified to remove coke and create a final pozzolan product having a strength activity index (SAI) in the range of 80-160, per ASTM 618.