STUDY INTO CARBOTHERMIC METHOD OF TITANIUM RAW MATERIAL DECOMPOSITION IN CASE OF ARTIFICIALLY SYNTHESIZED PEROVSKITE

Abstract

The article states the advantages of carbothermic perovskite concentrate decomposition in comparison with hydrometallurgical methods. The papers using the carbothermic method are noted. The paper provides information on existing perovskite processing methods that found no industrial application. The results obtained when studying titanium raw material decomposition in case of CaO·TiO2 artificially synthesized perovskite are given. Artificial perovskite was synthesized in a muffle furnace where a mixture of oxides (CaO = 41,2 wt.% and TiO2 = 58,8 wt.%) was premixed for 15 minutes and then briquetted into pellets using a 15 mm steel mold on a 147 МPa hydraulic press. The temperature of CaTiO3 synthesis was 1300 °C with a holding time of 4 hours. Experiments with a different carbon excess (20 and 30 wt.% of the content stoichiometrically required to recover perovskite components) were carried out. The carbothermic process of artificial perovskite decomposition (4 g pellets) was carried out in a vacuum furnace with a graphite heater in two stages: at 1500 °C, 1 hour holding time and 10,1 kPa residual pressure in an argon atmosphere at the first stage, and at t = 1750 °C, τ = 1 h, 1,3 Pa residual chamber pressure at the second one. Reaction products were studied by X-ray diffraction analysis on the «D8 Advance Bruker AXS» diffractometer. Experimental results demonstrated the practical possibility of titanium and calcium extraction from perovskite using the carbothermic method.