Influence of non-vacuum electric arc synthesis energy on the product of tungsten ore concentrate processing

Abstract

Relevance. Caused by the problem of developing methods for obtaining tungsten carbide, especially from tungsten-containing waste. As a solution, a non-vacuum electric arc method is proposed. It is easy to operate and cheap compared to a direct analogue (arc discharge method in inert gas atmosphere). The resulting product can be used as a catalyst carrier in hydrogen production reactions. Aim. To determine the current and the energy entered in the system, necessary to obtain a product with a largest proportion of the hexagonal phase of tungsten carbide WC from tungsten ore concentrate by a non-vacuum electric arc method and investigate a sample with the largest proportion of tungsten carbide phase. Object. Electric arc synthesis in open air from tungsten ore concentrate. Methods. Grinding in a SAMPLE SPEX 8000M ball mill, magnetic separation, non-vacuum electric arc method of synthesis, X-ray phase analysis on a Shimadzu XRD 7000s X-ray diffractometer (λ=1.54060 Å), scanning electron microscopy combined with X-ray fluorescence energy-dispersive analysis based on a TESCAN VEGA 3 microscope SBU with OXFORD X-Max prefix, transmission electron microscopy combined with energy dispersive spectroscopy and selected area electron diffraction based on the JEM-2100F microscope, scanning electron-ion microscopy based on the QUANTA 200 3D microscope. Results. The authors have built the dependence of the phase composition of the product of non-vacuum electric arc synthesis at current strengths from 50 to 220 A. Mass fraction of each of the identified phases in the synthesis product was determined using the reference intensity ratio. The current and the energy entered in the system, which provide the largest proportion of tungsten carbide WC in the synthesis product, are determined. The authors studied the product containing the largest proportion of tungsten carbide WC using scanning and transmission electron microscopy methods.

Keywords

• Tungsten carbide
• tungsten ore concentrate
• electric arc discharge synthesis
• plasma
• open-air environment