At the end of this semester, students of the Chemistry Department visited the ‘Alumina’ company in Zvornik. The Alumina company actively supports our study program and motivates young people, students, and high school students for career development in the field of chemistry and technical sciences.

This time, besides other technologies, a particular focus in education was the topic of finely precipitated hydrate, which is a chemical product from bauxite and is important even for electrical engineering. At Alumina, it is produced to the highest quality standards and serves as a filler in electrical cables that prevent fire hazards (retardant).

Alumina and the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics in Banja Luka have almost a decade of successful cooperation, based on joint work on projects and the exchange of knowledge. The Alumina company is development-oriented and constantly works on improving its processes, creating opportunities for advancement in the field of technical sciences. Visits like this are an important step in motivating young generations to actively engage in technical sciences and recognize the importance of innovations and industry for society.

Through such activities, we want to inspire young people to think about innovations and future challenges in the chemical industry and to recognize the potential of this field for their careers. Students were surprised by the size of this industrial giant, which is the largest exporter from our country and an example of innovative work in chemistry at the European level. From this expert excursion, students understood the importance of the closed-loop chain of raw materials and top chemical technologies, as all the bauxite processed by Alumina comes from 5 domestic mines, and Alumina is currently the only factory in Europe that produces “soft aluminum” (fine chemical, not just metallurgical products).