Vacuum Smelting Process for Producing Ferrotungsten-Summary

Summary of the invention

The benefits and advantages of the process comprising the present invention are achieved by forming a substantially uniform mixture composed of controlled amounts of a finely-particulated tungsten ore concentrate derived from minerals, such as wolframite, scheelite, ferberite and/or huebnerite; a supplemental quantity of a finely-particulated iron-bearing material present in an amount to adjust the iron content of the mixture to provide the desired iron concentration in the resultant ferrotungsten alloy produced, and a carbonaceous reducing agent such as carbon present in an amount slightly in excess of the stoichiometric quantity required to reduce the tungstic oxide and any iron oxide compounds present in the mixture to the metallic state. The resultant uniform mixture is agglomerated into a plurality of shape-retaining pellets, which thereafter are heated to an elevated temperature ranging from about 2500° F. to about 3100° F. under a vacuum of less than about 0.5 Torr (500 microns) for a period of time sufficient to effect a reduction of substantially all of the tungsten oxide compounds and any iron oxides present to the metallic state and to effect an alloying of the reduced metallic tungsten and iron to form a ferrotungsten alloy. The vacuum smelting of the pelletized feed material further effects a volatilization of the contaminating constituents in the pelletized feed material, which are continuously withdrawn together with the gaseous reaction products of the oxidized carbonaceous reducing agent. The gaseous effluent can be treated to effect an extraction and recovery of certain valuable volatilized constituents therein, such as manganese, for example, and the balance of the gaseous effluent after appropriate treatment can be harmlessly discharged to the atmosphere. The resultant ferrotungsten alloy in the form of relatively dense sintered pellets are cooled to a temperature of about 300° F. or below, and thereafter are extracted from the vacuum smelting furnace.

Additional advantages and benefits of the present invention will become apparent upon a reading of the description of the preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the specific examples provided.

 

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