US2018202058A1PendingUtilityA1

Titanium master alloy for titanium-aluminum based alloys

59
Assignee: UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL RESOURCE SERVICES INCPriority: Jan 13, 2017Filed: Jan 16, 2018Published: Jul 19, 2018
Est. expiryJan 13, 2037(~10.5 yrs left)· nominal 20-yr term from priority
Inventors:James R. CoxChanaka L. DealwisBenjamin KohlerMichael G. LewisJuliane B. Kluck
C22C 14/00C25C 5/04C25C 3/12C25C 3/36C25C 3/28C25C 7/06C25C 7/007
59
PatentIndex Score
0
Cited by
0
References
0
Claims

Abstract

A process is disclosed for the electro-refinement of titanium aluminides to produce titanium-aluminum master alloys which process is effective even in the presence of substantial amounts of aluminum and in the presence of ten (10) or more weight percent oxygen in the material(s) to be refined. The process is likewise effective without the addition of titanium chlorides or other forms of soluble titanium to the electrolyte bath comprising halide salts of alkali metals or alkali-earth metals or a combination thereof.

Claims

exact text as granted — not AI-modified
What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A process for electro-refining titanium-aluminides to produce titanium master alloys, comprising:
 a. placing titanium-aluminide comprising more than ten weight percent aluminum, and at least ten weight percent oxygen, into a reaction vessel, the reaction vessel configured with an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte, the electrolyte including halide salts of alkali metals or alkali-earth metals or a combination thereof;   b. heating the electrolyte to a temperature of 500° C.-900° C. sufficient to create a molten electrolyte mixture;   c. directing an electrical current from the anode through the molten electrolyte mixture to the cathode; and   d. dissolving the titanium-aluminide from the anode to deposit a titanium-aluminum master alloy at the cathode.   
     
     
         2 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the anode includes a non-consumable mesh container in which the titanium aluminide is placed, the titanium aluminide being consumable during the refining process. 
     
     
         3 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium-aluminide comprises 10%-25% aluminum and at least 10% oxygen by weight. 
     
     
         4 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium-aluminide comprises 15%-25% aluminum and at least 10% oxygen by weight. 
     
     
         5 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium-aluminide comprises 20%-25% aluminum and at least 10% oxygen by weight. 
     
     
         6 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 99.0% titanium and about 1.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         7 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 98.0% titanium and about 2.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         8 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 97.0% titanium and about 3.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         9 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 96.0% titanium and about 4.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         10 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 95.0% titanium and about 5.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         11 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 94.0% titanium and about 6.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         12 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 93.0% titanium and about 7.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         13 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 92.0% titanium and about 8.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         14 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 91.0% titanium and about 9.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         15 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the titanium aluminum master alloy comprises about 90.0% titanium and about 10.0% aluminum by weight. 
     
     
         16 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrolyte is substantially free of added titanium chlorides. 
     
     
         17 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrolyte is substantially free of added forms of soluble titanium. 
     
     
         18 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the temperature range is between 550° C. and 650° C. and the titanium master alloy product is a powder. 
     
     
         19 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the temperature range is between 650° C. and 750° C. and the titanium master alloy product is wool-like. 
     
     
         20 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the temperature range is between 750° C. and 850° C. and the titanium master alloy product is crystalline. 
     
     
         21 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical current density of the cathode is between 0.01 A/cm 2  and 0.05 A/cm 2 . 
     
     
         22 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical current density of the cathode is between 0.05 A/cm 2  and 0.1 A/cm 2 . 
     
     
         23 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical current density of the cathode is between 0.1 A/cm 2  and 0.5 A/cm 2 . 
     
     
         24 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical current density of the cathode is between 0.5 A/cm 2  and 1.0 A/cm 2 . 
     
     
         25 . The process of  claim 1  further including the step of using a reference electrode to monitor electrical differentials wherein the electrical differential between the anode and the reference electrode is 0.2V-0.4V. 
     
     
         26 . The process of  claim 1  further including the step of using a reference electrode to monitor electrical differentials wherein the electrical differential between the anode and the reference electrode is 0.4V-0.6V. 
     
     
         27 . The process of  claim 1  further including the step of using a reference electrode to monitor electrical differentials wherein the electrical differential between the anode and the reference electrode is 0.6V-0.8V. 
     
     
         28 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical differential between the anode and the cathode is 0.4V-0.8V. 
     
     
         29 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical differential between the anode and the cathode is 0.8V-1.2V. 
     
     
         30 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical differential between the anode and the cathode is 1.2V-1.6V. 
     
     
         31 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the electrical differential between the anode and the cathode is 1.6V-2.0V. 
     
     
         32 . The process of  claim 1  comprising the further step of adjusting the distance between the anode and the cathode to prevent short circuiting of the current flow through the electrolyte between the anode and the cathode. 
     
     
         33 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the distance between the anode and the cathode is 2.0 cm-4.0 cm. 
     
     
         34 . The process of  claim 1  wherein the distance between the anode and the cathode is 4.0 cm-6.0 cm. 
     
     
         35 . A method of refining titanium aluminides into master titanium-aluminum alloys, comprising:
 a. placing a titanium aluminide comprising more than ten weight percent aluminum, and at least ten weight percent oxygen, into a reaction vessel, the reaction vessel configured with an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte, the electrolyte including halide salts of alkali metals or alkali-earth metals or a combination of both;   b. heating the electrolyte to a temperature sufficient to create a molten electrolyte mixture;   c. directing an electrical current from the anode through the molten electrolyte mixture to the cathode; and   d. dissolving the titanium aluminide from the anode to deposit a titanium-aluminum master alloy at the cathode, said master alloy containing up to 10 wt. % aluminum.   
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 35  wherein the electrolyte is substantially free of added titanium chlorides or other added forms of soluble titanium. 
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 35  further comprising, after the dissolution and deposition step, the steps of allowing the electrolyte to cool and recovering the titanium-aluminum master alloy from the reaction vessel prior to solidification of the electrolyte. 
     
     
         38 . The method of  claim 35  wherein the titanium-aluminum master alloy contains 2.5 wt. % or less aluminum.

Cited by (0)

No later patents cite this yet.

References (0)

No backward citations on record.