Method for melting minerals containing iron, titanium and vanadium

Abstract

A method for melting minerals containing iron, titanium and vanadium in a known initial quantity, in an electric melting furnace (11) provided with a containing body (12) developing around a central axis (X) and tillable by means of rotation on a tilting plane containing the central axis (X), provides to feed minerals and auxiliary materials into the containing body (12), to supply electric energy until a steady-state power (Pmax) and a steady-state temperature of at least 1450 DEG C are reached, to keep the steady-state temperature to obtain, as products of the melting of said minerals, liquid cast iron (G) containing vanadium and liquid slag (S) containing titanium oxide, wherein the liquid cast iron (G) contains at least 75% of the known initial quantity of vanadium, and the liquid slag (S) contains at least 90% of the known initial quantity of titanium oxide, and wherein the titanium oxide is contained at least for 40% in weight in the liquid slag (S), and to discharge separately the liquid slag (S), using a first tilting of the containing body (12) in a first direction, and the liquid cast iron (G), using a second tilting of the containing body (12) in a second direction.

Description

technical field [0001] The invention relates to a method for smelting minerals containing iron and titanium and also containing vanadium oxide. For most minerals containing iron oxides and titanium oxides, such as, for example but not limited to, titanomagnetite or titanite. [0002] In particular, the invention can be used to optimize the field of iron and steel production, starting from the described iron, titanium and vanadium oxides containing liquid cast iron with high vanadium content and slag with high titanium oxide content. Background of the invention [0003] For example, an industrial process for recovering titanium and vanadium from titanium and vanadium containing ferrous materials is known from US 3.929.461. [0004] It is actually known that titanium and iron can be present together with vanadium in the form of oxides in different mineral veins. Minerals consisting mainly of iron oxides and titanium oxides and also containing vanadium oxides may include: 3 ...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

[0011] Known technologies for smelting titanium hematite have the disadvantage that they operate under process conditions that do not allow maximum recovery of vanadium in liquid cast iron

[0020] This is therefore a disadvantage of the known techniques described above: they have reduced efficiency and little operational flexibility, especially in relation to the static configuration of the melting furnace

[0025] A disadvantage of smelting titanomagnetite in a blast furnace is due to clogging due to the formation of titanium carbide

[0026] Smelting in a submerged arc furnace would have the following disadvantages: it would not allow to maximize the recovery of vanadium in liquid cast iron, because the processing temperature is low which slows down the chemical reduction kinetics, and it does not allow sufficient fluidity of the slag, which is provided with High viscosity associated with high content of titanium oxide

[0027] Melting in non-tiltable electric furnaces with open baths poses problems of inflexibility in regulation and in particular has the disadvantage of not allowing to minimize the slag head inside the furnace

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