Abstract
Titanium hydride (TiH2) is one of the basic materials for titanium (Ti) powder metallurgy. A novel method was proposed to produce TiH2 from the reduction of titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4) with magnesium hydride (MgH2) in the hydrogen (H2) atmosphere. The primary approach of this process is to produce TiH2 at a low-temperature range through an efficient and energy-saving process for further titanium powder production. In this study, the thermodynamic assessment and technoeconomic analysis of the process were investigated. The results show that the formation of TiH2 is feasible at low temperatures, and the molar ratio between TiCl4 and metal hydride as a reductant material has a critical role in its formation. Moreover, it was found that the yield of TiH2 is slightly higher when CaH2 is used as a reductant agent. The calculated equilibrium composition diagrams show that when the molar ratio between TiCl4 and metal hydrides is greater than the stoichiometric amount, the TiCl3 phase also forms. With a further increase in this ratio to greater than 4, no TiH2 was formed, and TiCl3 was the dominant product. Furthermore, the technoeconomic study revealed that the highest return on investment was achieved for the production scale of 5 t/batch of Ti powder production, with a payback time of 2.54 years. The analysis shows that the application of metal hydrides for TiH2 production from TiCl4 is technically feasible and economically viable.
Highlights
In the past decade, the rapid growth in aerospace, power generation, and biomedical industries has resulted in significant attention on the industry of titanium (Ti) and its alloys
Thermodynamic assessment of TiH2 synthesized from TiCl4 was investigated between
The thermodynamic assessment revealed that the formation of TiH2 was feasible in the TiCl4 -MgH2 reaction system
Summary
The rapid growth in aerospace, power generation, and biomedical industries has resulted in significant attention on the industry of titanium (Ti) and its alloys. Titanium can be used in severe conditions such as high temperature and pressure and a corrosive environment. Since the invention of the Kroll process for the production of titanium, it has been the primary practical production method in the industry [5]. This method has several drawbacks, such as long production time, elevated production temperature, and significant energy consumption [6]. Another major obstacle in producing low-cost titanium products is that the Kroll process final output is titanium sponge.
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