Metal impurities, removal from

Slag (in metallurgical processing) refers to the solid or liquid impurities removed from molten metal. 

Major impurities (calcium, magnesium, and other metals) are removed from solution by precipitation (Section 7.5.2). The solids are separated from the treated brine by settling (Section 7.5.3) and one or two stages of filtration (Section 7.5.4). The precipitated solids are removed from the settler for disposal, and the residual brine contains a few ppm of hardness. This is not acceptable in membrane cells. An ion-exchange process therefore follows in that case (Section 7.5.5). The fully treated brine then is ready for use in the cells but is alkaline and contains carbonate. Most plants add acid to the brine in order to improve cell operation and chlorine quality, and this is the subject of Section 7.5.6. 

Crude lead contains traces of a number of metals. The desilvering of lead is considered later under silver (Chapter 14). Other metallic impurities are removed by remelting under controlled conditions when arsenic and antimony form a scum of lead(II) arsenate and antimonate on the surface while copper forms an infusible alloy which also takes up any sulphur, and also appears on the surface. The removal of bismuth, a valuable by-product, from lead is accomplished by making the crude lead the anode in an electrolytic bath consisting of a solution of lead in fluorosilicic acid. Gelatin is added so that a smooth coherent deposit of lead is obtained on the pure lead cathode when the current is passed. The impurities here (i.e. all other metals) form a sludge in the electrolytic bath and are not deposited on the cathode. 

Because of the development of electronic appHcations for WF, higher purities of WF have been required, and considerable work has been done to improve the existing manufacturing and purification processes (20). Most metal contaminants and gaseous impurities are removed from WF by... 

In both the sulfuric and nitric acid processes, the dorn metal must be in shot form prior to treatment to secure a reasonably rapid reaction. A number of steps also may be required in processing the dorne metal to remove miscellaneous impurities, particularly in treating material from copper-anode slime (31). 

Lithium is used in metallurgical operations for degassing and impurity removal (see Metallurgy). In copper (qv) refining, lithium metal reacts with hydrogen to form lithium hydride which subsequendy reacts, along with further lithium metal, with cuprous oxide to form copper and lithium hydroxide and lithium oxide. The lithium salts are then removed from the surface of the molten copper. 

Refining Processes. AH the reduction processes yield an impure metal containing some of the minor elements present in the concentrate, eg, cadmium in 2inc, or some elements introduced during the smelting process, eg, carbon in pig iron. These impurities must be removed from the cmde metal in order to meet specifications for use. Refining operations may be classified according to the kind of phases involved in the process, ie, separation of a vapor from a Hquid or soHd, separation of a soHd from a Hquid, or transfer between two Hquid phases. In addition, they may be characterized by whether or not they involve oxidation—reduction reactions. 

Volatilization. In this simplest separation process, the impurity or the base metal is removed as a gas. Lead containing small amounts of zinc is refined by batch vacuum distillation of the zinc. Most of the zinc produced by smelting processes contains lead and cadmium. Cmde zinc is refined by a two-step fractional distillation. In the first column, zinc and cadmium are volatilized from the lead residue, and in the second column cadmium is removed from the zinc (see Zinc and zinc alloys). 

Impurities can be removed by formation of a gaseous compound, as in the fire-refining of copper (qv). Sulfur is removed from the molten metal by oxidation with air and evolution of sulfur dioxide. Oxygen is then removed by reduction with C, CO, in the form of natural gas, reformed... 

Molten aluminum is removed from the cells by siphoning, generally daily, into a cmcible. Normally the metal is 99.6—99.9% pure. The principal impurities are Ee, Si, Ti, V, and Mn, and come largely from the anode, but also from the alumina. 

Anhydrous zinc chloride can be made from the reaction of the metal with chlorine or hydrogen chloride. It is usually made commercially by the reaction of aqueous hydrochloric acid with scrap zinc materials or roasted ore, ie, cmde zinc oxide. The solution is purified in various ways depending upon the impurities present. For example, iron and manganese precipitate after partial neutralization with zinc oxide or other alkah and oxidation with chlorine or sodium hypochlorite. Heavy metals are removed with zinc powder. The solution is concentrated by boiling, and hydrochloric acid is added to prevent the formation of basic chlorides. Zinc chloride is usually sold as a 47.4 wt % (sp gr 1.53) solution, but is also produced in soHd form by further evaporation until, upon cooling, an almost anhydrous salt crystallizes. The soHd is sometimes sold in fused form. 

In a number of reflning reactions where bubbles are formed by passing an inert gas tlrrough a liquid metal, the removal of impurities from the metal is accomplished by transfer across a boundaty layer in the metal to the rising gas bubbles. The mass uairsfer coefflcient can be calculated in this case by the use of the Calderbank equation (1968)... 

In either case the Pb contains numerous undesirable metal impurities, notably Cu, Ag, Au, Zn, Sn, As and Sb, some of which are clearly valuable in themselves. Copper is first removed by liquation the Pb bullion is melted and held just above its freezing point when Cu rises to the surface as an insoluble solid which is skimmed off. Tin, As and Sb are next removed by preferential oxidation in a reverberatory furnace and skimming off the oxides alternatively, the molten bullion is churned with an oxidizing flux of molten NaOH/NaN03 (Harris process). The softened Pb may still contain Ag, Au and perhaps Bi. Removal of the first two depends on their preferential solubility in Zn the mixed metals are cooled slowly from 480° to below 420° when the Zn (now containing nearly all the Ag and Au) solidifies as a crust which is skimmed off the... 

Schimmel Co. attempted to acetylise the alcohol by means of acetic anhydride, but the reaction product only showed 5 per cent, of ester, which was not submitted to further examination. The bulk of the alcohol had been converted into a hydrocarbon, with loss of water. Ninety per cent, formic acid is most suitable for splitting off water. Gne hundred grams of the sesquiterpene alcohol were heated to boiling-point with three times the quantity of formic acid, well shaken, and, after cooling, mixed with water. The layer of oil removed from the liquid was freed fi-om resinous impurities by steam-distillation, and then fractionated at atmo.spheric pressure. It was then found to consist of a mixture of dextro-rotatory and laevo-rotatory hydrocarbons. By repeated fractional distillation, partly in vacuo, partly at ordinary pressure, it was possible to separate two isomeric sesquiterpenes, which, after treatment with aqueous alkali, and distillation over metallic sodium, showed the following physical constants —... 

The most efficient processes in Table I are for steel and alumintim, mainly because these metals are produced in large amounts, and much technological development has been lavished on them. Magnesium and titanium require chloride intermediates, decreasing their efficiencies of production lead, copper, and nickel require extra processing to remove unwanted impurities. Sulfide ores produce sulfur dioxide (SO2), a pollutant, which must be removed from smokestack gases. For example, in copper production the removal of SO, and its conversion to sulfuric acid adds up to 8(10) JA g of additional process energy consumption. In aluminum production disposal of waste ciyolite must be controlled because of possible fiuoride contamination. 

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