Chlorination of reduced ilmenite concentrates and synthetic rutile

Chlorination of reduced ilmenites of different grades (primary, secondary and HYTI 70) and synthetic rutile was investigated at 235 °C. The main phases of primary and secondary ilmenites were FeTi O and FeTiO; HYTI 70 contained TiO ; synthetic rutile consisted of titania with titanium suboxides and trace amount of iron. Iron oxides were reduced to metallic iron. Titanium oxides were reduced to titanium oxycarbide or oxycarbonitride; reduced samples contained a small amount of titanium suboxides. In chlorination of reduced ilmenite concentrates and synthetic rutile, titanium oxycarbide or oxycarbonitride, metallic iron, and TiO were chlorinated. The degree of chlorination of both iron and titanium oxycarbide/oxycarbonitride was 95-98%; chlorination of iron was faster than that of titanium oxycarbonitride. The removal of iron by leaching increased the chlorination rate of titanium oxycarbide/oxycarbonitride; it was close to completion in 35 min

Behavior of impurities in chlorination of reduced Murray Basin ilmenite

Technology for titanium metal production includes chlorination of stable oxide TiO2 in the presence of carbon at 800 - 1100 °C to produce TiCl4. The high temperature chlorination is conducted in a fluidized bed and requires a TiO2-enriched, low impurity feed. At these temperatures, impurities in the upgraded feed are also chlorinated which imposes strict limit to the contents CaO, Cr2O3, MnO, MgO2, etc. whose chlorination products may collapse the fluidised bed operation. Titanium oxycarbide/oxycarbonitride compounds can be chlorinated at much lower temperatures (200 - 350 °C). In the low temperature chlorination, impurities either do not chlorinate or chlorinate very slowly. Conversion of titania in synthetic rutile or ilmenite ores into titanium oxycarbide requires 1200 - 1400 °C while synthesis of titanium oxycarbonitride can be implemented at 1150 - 1300 °C. Crucial to the development of a viable alternative technology for processing of titanium minerals is the behaviour of impurities in the ilmenite ore in reduction and chlorination reactions. The primary impurities in Murray Basin ilmenite concentrate and their behavior in reduction under N2 were reported previously. This paper examines the behavior of key impurities in a typical Murray Basin ilmenite ore during carbothermal reduction/nitrodation in a H2-N2 mixture and during chlorination

The NOTCH-RIPK4-IRF6-ELOVL4 Axis Suppresses Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Receptor-interacting serine/threonine protein kinase 4 (RIPK4) and its kinase substrate the transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 6 (IRF6) play critical roles in the development and maintenance of the epidermis. In addition, ourselves and others have previously shown that RIPK4 is a NOTCH target gene that suppresses the development of cutaneous and head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs). In this study, we used autochthonous mouse models, where the expression of Pik3caH1047R oncogene predisposes the skin and oral cavity to tumor development, and show that not only loss of Ripk4, but also loss of its kinase substrate Irf6, triggers rapid SCC development. In vivo rescue experiments using Ripk4 or a kinase-dead Ripk4 mutant showed that the tumor suppressive function of Ripk4 is dependent on its kinase activity. To elucidate critical mediators of this tumor suppressive pathway, we performed transcriptional profiling of Ripk4-deficient epidermal cells followed by multiplexed in vivo CRISPR screening to identify genes with tumor suppressive capabilities. We show that Elovl4 is a critical Notch-Ripk4-Irf6 downstream target gene, and that Elovl4 loss itself triggers SCC development. Importantly, overexpression of Elovl4 suppressed tumor growth of Ripk4-deficient keratinocytes. Altogether, our work identifies a potent Notch1-Ripk4-Irf6-Elovl4 tumor suppressor axis