Carbothermic reduction of vanadium titanomagnetite with the assistance of sodium carbonate

In the present study, the carbothermic reduction of vanadium titanomagnetite concentrates (VTC) with the assistance of Na₂CO₃ was carried out in argon atmosphere between 1073 K and 1473 K. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) were used to investigate the phase transformations during the reaction process. By investigating the reaction between VTC and Na₂CO₃, it was concluded that molten Na₂CO₃ could break the structure of titanomagnetite by combining with the acidic oxides (Fe₂O₃, TiO₂, Al₂O₃, and SiO₂) to form the Na-rich melt, and release FeO and MgO. Therefore, Na₂CO₃ could accelerate the reduction rate. In addition, the addition of Na₂CO₃ was also beneficial for the agglomeration of iron particles and the slag-metal separation by decreasing the viscosity of slag. Thus, the Na₂CO₃ assisted carbothermic reduction will be a promising method to treat VTC at low temperatures.