Decomposition of acid dissolved titanium slag from Australia by sodium hydroxide

The kinetics of the decomposition of acid dissolved titanium slag with a sodium hydroxide system under atmospheric pressure was studied. The effect of reaction temperature, particle size and NaOH-to-slag mass ratio on titanium extraction was investigated. The results show that temperature and particle size have significant influence on titanium extraction. The experimental data of titanium extraction show that the shrinking core model with chemical reaction controlled process is most applicable for the decomposition of slag, with an apparent activation energy of 62.4 kJ·mol−1. Approximately 85 wt.%−90 wt.% of the titanium can be extracted from the slag under the optimal conditions. In addition, the purity of titanium dioxide obtained in the product is up to 98.5 wt.%.