Laboratory Studies of the Process of Opening Ilmenite Concentrate Using Energy-Efficient Technology Using Ammonium Fluoride

Abstract

Purpose. It consists in evaluating the main technological possibilities of the innovative direction of obtaining titanium-containing materials from ilmenite concentrate by hydrofluorination.
 Research methods. Laboratory experiments on the opening of ilmenite concentrate by hydrofluorination in an aqueous solution at different concentrations and temperature regimes, separation of the obtained products by leaching and filtration, evaluation of the composition of products by chemical analysis methods.
 Obtained results. The research used a raw material component – ilmenite concentrate from the Malyshev deposit (Volnogorsk HMC, Ukraine). A solid-phase fluorine-containing complexing agent – ammonium fluoride (NH4F) was used as a reagent. As a working version of the organization of the process, the scheme of dissection of ilmenite concentrate in solution at temperatures from 170 °С to 200 °С was chosen. By-products of the reaction in the form of a steam-gas mixture (VGM), which does not contain fluorine components, were evacuated from the reactor. Fluorine remains in the products of the reaction. In the reactor, an aqueous suspension of soluble complex salts of titanium and silicon, unreacted ammonium fluoride and poorly soluble iron complex salts are formed. The resulting suspension is used in further procedures for the separation of components. Studies conducted at temperatures no higher than 200 °С showed the effectiveness of the process of opening ilmenite concentrate to obtain ammonium fluorometalates, which are divided into the following hydrometallurgical procedures.
 Scientific novelty. The dependencies of the process parameters were determined - the ratio of reagents, the degree of filling of the reactor on the process, the influence of the process temperature on the reaction rate and the completeness of titanium extraction.
 Practical value. The obtained data on the degree of purity of the reaction products confirm the prospects of the researched technology for the optimization of a number of production schemes for obtaining materials containing titanium, and the effective use of accompanying oxides – silicon and iron.