A method of recycling tungsten from waste materials and an equipment to perform such method

Abstract

The subject of the solution is a method of recycling tungsten and recovering tungsten oxides as a compound for the production of pure tungsten and possibly tungsten carbides in the form of powders. The method of recycling tungsten from waste material includes the following step, where waste material containing at least 30 wt. % tungsten, which further contains at least 1.5 wt. % combustible components, is roasted at a temperature in the range from 300 to 350 °C in the presence of oxygen for at least 30 min, whereby the combustible components of the waste material ignite and burn while simultaneously increasing the combustion temperature above 500 °C, at which the tungsten compounds are oxidized to a mixture of its oxides, i.e. roasted material. The subject of the solution is also a device for carrying out this method.