Microwave-assisted preparation of nanocluster rutile TiO2 from titanium slag by NaOH-KOH mixture activation

Abstract

Rutile titanium dioxide is widely used in coatings, cosmetics, paper products, and other industries as the source of white inorganic pigment. The common preparation methods of rutile from titanium slag include the molten salt method, hydrochloric acid method, oxidation–reduction method, etc. In this paper, the NaOH-KOH sub-molten salt method was used to activate titanium slag. After a series of subsequent leaching processes and an attached roasting process with the assistance of microwave technology, a nanocluster was formed by nanorods with a diameter below 100 nm and a length below 500 nm. It is found that titanate changes to the stable metantitanate at a temperature of 80 °C in the process of acid leaching. Moreover, the relationship between the concentration of sub-molten salt, calcination temperature, and titanium leaching rate was analysed by kinetics. The results show that the leaching rate of titanium reached the peak when the mixed alkali concentration was 15 mol/L, and the leaching rate of titanium reached the maximum value when the roasting temperature was 450 °C. According to the Arrhenius equation, the activation energy of titanium slag in the NaOH-KOH sub-molten salt system was 130.8 kJ/mol. The pre-exponential factor was 5.44 × 10-4 m2/s, and a chemical reaction process controlled the whole process.