Molten salt electrolyzer, and method for producing metal magnesium using the same and method for producing a titanium sponge

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018195151-A1
Application number	US-201615741197-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 27, 2016
Priority date	Jul 28, 2015
Publication date	Jul 12, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A molten salt electrolyzer having a metal collection chamber, an electrolysis chamber, and two or more electrolytic cell units positioned in the electrolysis chamber. Each electrolytic cell unit has a cathode having an inner space in a prism form; at least one bipolar electrode in a rectangular cylinder form and disposed in the cathode inner space; and an anode in a prism form and disposed in an inner space of the bipolar electrode. At least part of individual planes forming an outer side of the bipolar electrode closest to the cathode faces a plane forming the prism-form inner space of the cathode. At least part of individual planes forming the inner side of the bipolar electrode closest to the anode faces a plane forming the prism of the anode. At least one plane of the cathode constitutes one plane of a cathode of another electrolytic cell unit.

First claim

1 . A molten salt electrolyzer having a metal collection chamber and an electrolysis chamber, the molten salt electrolyzer having two or more electrolytic cell units in the electrolysis chamber,
wherein each electrolytic cell unit has a cathode having a space in a prism form, an anode in a prism form, and at least one bipolar electrode in a rectangular cylinder form, wherein the bipolar electrode is disposed in the inner space of the cathode, and the anode being disposed in the inner space of the bipolar electrode, wherein at least part of the individual planes forming the outer side of the rectangular cylinder of the bipolar electrode closest to the cathode faces the plane forming the prism-form space of the cathode, wherein at least part of the individual planes forming the inner side of the rectangular cylinder of the bipolar electrode closest to the anode faces the plane forming the prism of the anode, and wherein at least one plane of the cathode constitutes one plane of the cathode of another electrolytic cell unit.

2 . The molten salt electrolyzer according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the distance between the cathode plane on the side opposite to the metal collection chamber and the bipolar electrode plane closest to the cathode plane, the distance between the bipolar electrode plane on the side opposite to the metal collection chamber and another bipolar electrode plane closest to the bipolar electrode plane, and the distance between the bipolar electrode plane on the side opposite to the metal collection chamber and the anode plane closest to the bipolar electrode plane is shorter than the distance between the corresponding cathode plane on the metal collection chamber side and the bipolar electrode plane closest to the cathode plane, the distance between the corresponding bipolar electrode plane on the metal collection chamber side and another bipolar electrode plane closest to the bipolar electrode plane, or the distance between the corresponding bipolar electrode plane on the metal collection chamber side and the anode plane closest to the bipolar electrode plane.

3 . The molten salt electrolyzer according to claim 1 , wherein the anode of the electrolytic cell unit is disposed so that the ratio of the distance from the center portion of the anode to the cathode plane on the side opposite to the metal collection chamber and the distance from the center portion of the anode to the cathode plane on the metal collection chamber side is 1:0.5 to 1:2.

4 . The molten salt electrolyzer according to claim 1 , wherein the anode has a horizontal cross-section in which the ratio of the long side and the short side is 1:1 to 10:1.

5 . A method for producing metal magnesium, comprising subjecting magnesium chloride to fusion electrolysis using the molten salt electrolyzer according to claim 1 to produce metal magnesium.

6 . A method for producing a titanium sponge, comprising reducing titanium tetrachloride using the metal magnesium obtained by the method according to claim 5 to produce a titanium sponge.

Assignees

• Toho Titanium Co Ltd

Inventors

• Horikawa Matsuhide
• Suzuki Daisuke

Classifications

• C22B26/22 Primary

  Obtaining magnesium · CPC title

• C25C3/04

  of magnesium · CPC title

• C25C7/02

  Electrodes (consumable anodes for the refining the metals C25C1/00 - C25C5/00); Connections thereof · CPC title

• C22B5/04

  by aluminium, other metals or silicon · CPC title

• C22B34/1272

  reduction of titanium halides, e.g. Kroll process · CPC title