In various embodiments, a metal alloy resistant to aqueous corrosion consists essentially of or consists of niobium with additions of tungsten, molybdenum, and one or both of ruthenium and palladium.

Disclosed is a single-chamber furnace for fuming an evaporable metal or metal compound from a metallurgical charge including a bath furnace for containing a molten charge up to a determined level, the furnace being equipped with a non-transferred plasma torch for the generation of plasma and a first submerged injector for injecting the plasma below the determined level, the furnace further including an afterburning zone to form an oxidized form of the at least one evaporable metal or metal compound, and a recovery zone for recovering the oxidized form from the gas formed in the afterburning zone, whereby the furnace is further equipped with a second submerged injector for injecting extra gas into the furnace below the determined level. Further disclosed is the use of the furnace and a process for fuming an evaporable metal or metal compound from a metallurgical charge.

In various embodiments, a metal alloy resistant to aqueous corrosion consists essentially of or consists of niobium with additions of tungsten, molybdenum, and one or both of ruthenium and palladium.

An apparatus for melting metals whose melting temperature is below 1000° C. may have a device for forming a plasma arranged on a melting furnace. The device is connected to an electrical voltage supply and to the device at least one first supply for a plasma gas, with which the plasma can be formed, and is designed, dimensioned, arranged and/or aligned in such a way that the formed plasma is arranged at a distance from the metal as the material to be melted, and in this case a hot gas stream can be formed with the plasma, which hot gas stream is aligned in the direction of the material to be melted, and a melting tank or crucible is arranged in the melting furnace to receive the molten metal.

One object of the present disclosure is to provide a production method of magnesium hydride that is free of carbon dioxide and has high production efficiency, a power generation system that does not emit carbon dioxide or radiation using magnesium hydride, and an apparatus for producing magnesium hydride; therefore, the method for producing magnesium hydride of the present disclosure comprises a procedure for irradiating a magnesium compound different from magnesium hydride with hydrogen plasma, and a procedure for depositing a magnesium product containing magnesium hydride on a depositor for depositing magnesium hydride disposed within the range in which hydrogen plasma is present, wherein the surface temperature of the depositor is kept no more than a predetermined temperature at which magnesium hydride precipitates.

Provided are a method and apparatus for refining titanium scraps and sponge titanium, which can remove oxygen from a melt by supplying a deoxidizing gas to the surface of the melt in order to refine titanium scraps and sponge titanium. The method for refining titanium scraps and sponge titanium comprises supplying hydrogen ions and electrons in plasma to a titanium melt to remove oxygen from the titanium melt surface having an oxide layer formed thereon. In addition, the apparatus comprises: a vacuum chamber; a crucible located in the vacuum chamber and configured to perform melting by the magnetic field of an induction coil in a state in which a melt and the inner wall of the crucible; a calcium gas supply means configured to supply calcium gas from the bottom of the crucible to the space between the inner wall of the crucible and the melt.

In various embodiments, a metal alloy resistant to aqueous corrosion consists essentially of or consists of niobium with additions of tungsten, molybdenum, and one or both of ruthenium and palladium.

Provided is a titanium cast product made of commercially pure titanium, the titanium cast product being produced by electron-beam remelting or plasma arc melting, comprising: a melted and resolidified layer in a range of 1 mm or more in depth at a surface serving as a surface to be rolled, the melted and resolidified layer being obtained by adding one or more kinds of β stabilizer elements to the surface and melting and resolidifying the surface. An average value of β stabilizer element(s) concentration in a range of within 1 mm in depth is higher than β stabilizer element(s) concentration in a base material by, in mass %, equal to or more than 0.08 mass % and equal to or less than 1.50 mass %. As the material containing the β stabilizer element, powder, a chip, wire, or foil is used. As means for melting a surface layer, electron-beam heating and plasma arc heating are used.

The invention concerns a process for the separation of cobalt from lithium present in a charge comprising lithium-ion batteries or related products, comprising the steps of: smelting the charge using a bath furnace equipped with a submerged air-fed plasma torch for injecting plasma gas into the melt; defining and maintaining a bath redox potential where cobalt is reduced to the metallic state and reporting to an alloy phase, and whereby lithium is oxidized as Li.sub.2O and reporting to the slag phase; decanting and separating the phases. It is characterized in that the reduction and oxidizing steps are performed simultaneously. A suitably low cobalt concentration is obtained in the slag.

The present disclosure concerns an apparatus suitable for smelting and separating metals in flexible oxido-reduction conditions. More particularly, it concerns an apparatus for smelting metallurgical charges comprising a bath furnace susceptible to contain a molten charge up to a determined level, characterized in that the furnace is equipped with: at least one non-transfer plasma torch for the generation of first hot gases; at least one oxygas burner for the generation of second hot gasses; and, submerged injectors for injecting said first and second hot gases below said determined level.