JOM | 2021
Heating-Assisted Preparation of Ferrotitanium to Recover Valuable Elements of Ilmenite and Reduce Aluminum Consumption
Abstract
To reduce the consumption of aluminum in the traditional production process of ferrotitanium, the use of economic electrical energy is considered to replace the chemical energy provided by the reaction of aluminum and heating agent. Analysis of slag by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and FactSage 7.2 revealed that heating-assisted aluminothermic reduction of ilmenite was a thermal explosion process. Increasing the Al ratio could promote the reduction of ilmenite and increase the recovery rate of Ti according to inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) analysis and calculation. The optimal molar ratio of CaO to Al2O3 was 1:4 for the preparation of FeTi50, achieving good separation of alloy and slag and better Fe and Ti recovery rates than without CaO addition.