Melting titanium

Arc-melted titanium has excellent fluidity and lends itself readily to the creation of thin margins. Spmes must be carefully placed and abundant venting provided, however, to avoid holes and porosity ia the casting. The detection of defects by radiography is faciUtated by the low density of titanium, and conventional dental x-ray units may be used ia many cases. 

Per75] Perkins, J., Ed., Shape-Memory Effect in Alloys, Plenum Press, 1975 [Per75 ] Perkins, J., Edwards, G.R., Such, C.R., Johnson, J.M., and Allen, R.R., Thermomechanical Characteristics of AUoys Exhibiting Martensitic Thermoelasticity, in [Per75], p. 273-299 [Pet71] Peterson, V.C. and Buehl, R.C., Methods for Melting Titanium-Base AUoy, U.S. Patent No. 3,552,947, Jan 5,1971... 

Why is it important to use an inert atmosphere to surround the metal when arc-melting titanium ... 

Combustion of zirconium and titanium. After several equipment failures in which evidences of melted titanium were found under operating temperatures not exceeding 250°C, a study of the ignition and combustion of titanium and zirconium was started. This work has been done by Stanford Research Institute under the direction of E. M. Kinderman [137]. 

Electrolysis. Electro winning of hafnium, zirconium, and titanium has been proposed as an alternative to the KroU process. Electrolysis of an all chloride hafnium salt system is inefficient because of the stabiHty of lower chlorides in these melts. The presence of fluoride salts in the melt increases the StabiHty of in solution and results in much better current efficiencies. Hafnium is produced by this procedure in Erance (17). 

Other Metals. AH the sodium metal produced comes from electrolysis of sodium chloride melts in Downs ceUs. The ceU consists of a cylindrical steel cathode separated from the graphite anode by a perforated steel diaphragm. Lithium is also produced by electrolysis of the chloride in a process similar to that used for sodium. The other alkaH and alkaHne-earth metals can be electrowon from molten chlorides, but thermochemical reduction is preferred commercially. The rare earths can also be electrowon but only the mixture known as mischmetal is prepared in tonnage quantity by electrochemical means. In addition, beryIHum and boron are produced by electrolysis on a commercial scale in the order of a few hundred t/yr. Processes have been developed for electrowinning titanium, tantalum, and niobium from molten salts. These metals, however, are obtained as a powdery deposit which is not easily separated from the electrolyte so that further purification is required. 

Titanium slag and synthetic mtile are also used as raw materials in the production of titanium whites. Titanium slag results from a metaHurgical process during which iron (qv) is removed from ilmenite by reduction with coke in an electric arc furnace at 1200—1600°C. Under these conditions, iron oxide is reduced to metal, melts, and separates from the formed titanium slag. Titanium slag contains 70—75% Ti02 and only 5—8% iron. 

Other methods iaclude hydrogen reduction of TiCl to TiCl and TiCl2 reduction above the melting poiat of titanium metal with sodium, which presents a container problem plasma reduction, ia which titanium is collected as a powder, and ionized and vaporized titanium combine with chlorine gas to reform TiCl2 on cool-down and aluminum reduction, which reduces TiCl to lower chlorides (19,20). 

---