Preparation of rare earth metal, yttrium, or scandium

Abstract

Abstract Rare earth metals (including Sc and Y) is prepared by heating a reducing metal together with a coherent mass of rare earth metal chloride in an inert atmosphere to a reaction temperature at least 30 DEG C. lower than the melting point of the resulting rare earth metal sponge but higher than the melting point of the reducing metal choride by-product; the reducing metal must have a boiling point at atmospheric pressure at least 100 DEG C. below the boiling point of the rare earth metal. Suitable reducing metals are Na, K, Li, Mg, Ca, Ba, Zn and Cd. The melting point of the reducing metal chloride may be lowered to the required value by the addition of melting point depressants, such as alkali metal or alkaline earth metal halides which are not reducible by the reducing metal.

Inventors

• 👤 Dale Lupfer Schechter
• 👤 William Edward Domning

Bibliographic Details