Producing a titanium product

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016194733-A1
Application number	US-201414912846-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 19, 2014
Priority date	Aug 19, 2013
Publication date	Jul 7, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A method ( 400 ) for producing a titanium product is disclosed. The method ( 400 ) can include obtaining TiO 2 -slag ( 401 ), and producing a titanium product from the TiO 2 -slag using a metallic reducing agent ( 402 ) at a moderate temperature and a pressure to directly produce a titanium product chemically separated from metal impurities in the TiO 2 slag ( 403 ). The titanium product can comprise TiH 2 and optionally elemental titanium. Impurities in the titanium product can then removed ( 404 ) by leaching, purifying and separation to form a purified titanium product.

First claim

1 . A method for producing a titanium product, comprising:
obtaining TiO 2 -slag; producing the titanium product from the TiO 2 -slag using a metallic reducing agent at a moderate temperature under a hydrogen atmosphere at a pressure to directly produce the titanium product chemically separated from metal impurities in the TiO 2 -slag, wherein the titanium product comprises TiH 2 and optionally elemental titanium; and removing the metal impurities from the titanium product to form a purified titanium product.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of producing the titanium product includes reducing the TiO 2 -slag directly with the metallic reducing agent.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of producing includes pre-treating the TiO 2 -slag to produce intermediate products including at least one of water-washed derivatives of sodium titanate, metatitanic acid, and substantially pure titanium dioxide and then reducing the intermediate products using the metallic reducing agent.

4 . The method of claim 3 , further comprising deoxygenating the titanium product at a higher temperature above the moderate temperature and under hydrogen atmosphere using a second reducing agent which is stronger than the metallic reducing agent to produce a particulate titanium product, coarsening the particulate titanium product to a target particle size range, and cooling the particulate titanium product under a hydrogen atmosphere.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the metallic reducing agent comprises at least one of Mg, MgH 2 , and CaH 2 .

6 . (canceled)

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein reducing the TiO 2 -slag comprises combining the TiO 2 -slag, the metallic reducing agent, and a salt.

8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the salt comprises at least one of a mono-metal chloride salt, binary chloride salt, and a ternary chloride salt.

9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the salt comprises at least one of MgCl 2 +NaCl, MgCl 2 +KCl, and MgCl 2 +CaCl 2 .

10 . (canceled)

11 . (canceled)

12 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising dehydriding the purified titanium product to form titanium powder.

13 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising deep-deoxidizing the purified titanium product to reduce residual oxygen in the purified titanium product.

14 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the moderate temperature is between about 400° C. and about 1200° C.

15 . (canceled)

16 . (canceled)

17 . (canceled)

18 . The method of claim 1 , wherein obtaining the TiO 2 -slag comprises carbothermally reducing a titanium feedstock comprising at least one of ilmenite, natural rutile, and leucoxene.

19 . A method for producing a titanium product, comprising:
obtaining TiO 2 -slag; alkaline roasting the TiO 2 -slag to remove impurities from the slag and produce intermediate products including alkaline leached TiO 2 -slag and at least one of water-washed derivatives of sodium titanate, metatitaniic acid, and pure titanium dioxide; reducing the intermediate products using a metallic reducing agent at a temperature and a pressure to produce a titanium product comprising TiH 2 and optionally elemental titanium; and removing impurities from the titanium product to form a purified titanium product.

20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein alkaline roasting comprises:
combining NaOH with the TiO 2 -slag at a second temperature to transform TiO 2 into sodium titanate and to transform impurities into salts; and washing the sodium titanate with water to remove the salts and produce derivatives of sodium titanate.

21 . The method of claim 20 , wherein the second temperature is between about 450° C. and about 650° C.

22 . The method of claim 19 , wherein alkaline roasting further comprises removing impurities from the intermediate products.

23 . The method of claim 19 , wherein removing impurities from the intermediate products comprises:
digesting the alkaline leached TiO 2 -slag and water-washed derivatives of the intermediate products with HCl solution to produce titanium chloride solution; and hydrolyzing the titanium chloride solution at a third temperature to produce metatitanic acid.

24 . The method of claim 23 , wherein the third temperature is about a boiling temperature of the titanium chloride.

25 . The method of claim 19 , wherein the metallic reducing agent comprises at least one of Mg, MgH 2 , and CaH 2 .

26 . The method of claim 23 , wherein the TiO 2 -slag comprises upgraded TiO 2 -slag.

27 . (canceled)

28 . (canceled)

29 . (canceled)

30 . The method of claim 19 , further comprising dehydriding the purified titanium product.

31 . The method of claim 19 , further comprising deep-deoxidizing the purified titanium product to reduce residual oxygen in the titanium product.

32 . The method of claim 19 , wherein obtaining the TiO 2 -slag comprises carbothermally reducing a titanium feedstock comprising at least one of ilmenite, natural rutile, and leucoxene.

Assignees

• Univ Utah Res Found

Inventors

• Fang Zhigang Zak
• Fan Peng
• Middlemas Scott
• Guo Jun
• Zhang Ying
• Free Micheal
• Sathyapalan Amarchand
• Xia Yang

Classifications

• C22B34/1259 Primary

  treatment or purification of titanium containing solutions or liquors or slurries (C01G23/001 takes precedence) · CPC title

• C22B34/1268

  using alkali or alkaline-earth metals or amalgams · CPC title

• B22F2301/205

  Titanium, zirconium or hafnium · CPC title

• B22F2201/013

  Hydrogen · CPC title

• C22B34/1277

  using other metals, e.g. Al, Si, Mn · CPC title