초록 ▼

Aluminum metal in the gaseous state may be produced by breaking down of its salts at temperatures of at least 2500°to 5500°C. These very high temperatures may be reached in various ways, e.g., by producing a thermal plasma by means of a plasma arc or a plasma torch. There results a mixture of the tw

Aluminum metal in the gaseous state may be produced by breaking down of its salts at temperatures of at least 2500°to 5500°C. These very high temperatures may be reached in various ways, e.g., by producing a thermal plasma by means of a plasma arc or a plasma torch. There results a mixture of the two elemental gases; and the separation of the mixture is accomplished by instananeously chilling the hot gas stream from such a heater to a temperature of 136°to 1500°C in a “flash”cooler by contacting it directly with a liquid coolant, separately cooled. The liquid coolant may comprise the same aluminum salt as is fed to the plasma system; or it may be a solution of that compound with one or more other liquids, which solution may have a melting or boiling point in a desired temperature range; or it may be a quite different compound or compounds. The aluminum produced may be withdrawn as a liquid; or if the flash condenser operates below the melting point of aluminum, it may be obtained as a slurry of fine granules in the liquid coolant. The other elemental gas may pass through the liquid of the flash condenser uncondensed.

대표청구항 ▼

The process of producing aluminum from a salt containing aluminum and a single other element by steps comprising: a. heating said salt to a high temperature of at least 2500°-5500°C to break it into aluminum and said other element in a mixture comprising the two elemental gases; b. flash cooling sai

The process of producing aluminum from a salt containing aluminum and a single other element by steps comprising: a. heating said salt to a high temperature of at least 2500°-5500°C to break it into aluminum and said other element in a mixture comprising the two elemental gases; b. flash cooling said mixture comprising said two elemental gases from said high temperature, to a lower temperature of not over 1500°C within a time interval of not more than one to five seconds, by contacting said gas mixture directly with a coolant which is liquid at said lower temperature and is chemically nonreactive with said salt and its constituent elements in elemental form at said lower temperature; and c. condensing said aluminum in said liquid coolant while allowing said other element to pass on in a gas phase.