Preparation of dilute solutions of rare earth metal trichlorides by chlorination of their oxides in a molten NaCl-KCl equimolar mixture

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study and thermodynamic justification of the method for obtaining dilute solutions of rare earth metal trichlorides by chlorination of their oxides in a molten equimolar mixture of NaCl – KCl. And the effectiveness of this method is demonstrated by the example of lanthanum (III) and neodymium (III) oxides. Gibbs free energy of the reactions of La2O3 and Nd2O3 chlorination by different chlorinating agents has been calculated. The interaction of lanthanum (III) and neodymium (III) oxides in the molten equimolar mixture NaCl – KCl depending on the chlorination time and the material of reaction vessel (beryllium oxide and glass-carbon) has been studied experimentally. The results of thermodynamic modelling of the chlorination reactions of La2O3 and Nd2O3 by gaseous chlorine in this salt melt are presented. In the case of using a molten equimolar mixture of NaCl – KCl, a significant shift of the Gibbs energy to the negative region is observed compared with chlorination without the use of a salt medium. The effectiveness of chlorine as a chlorinating agent in the melt is based on the fact that in liquid NaCl-KCl Ln3+ ions form complexes with very small activity coefficient. The removal of synthesized lanthanum trichloride from the chlorination reaction zone due to its solubility in a low-viscosity NaCl-KCl melt has a beneficial effect on the rate of its flow. It has been shown that the formation of rare earth metal trichlorides occurs through the formation of LaOCl and NdOCl oxychlorides. The advantages of the proposed method of chlorination of rare earth metal oxides (REM) in the synthesis of solutions of their trichlorides in molten salts are shown.