Halide cracking-ingotting process

Claim 1

IN THE PROCESS WHEREIN A METAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF TITANIUM AND ZIRCONIUM IS PRODUCED BY THERMALLY DISSOCIATING A HALIDE SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF A CHLORIDE, A BROMIDE AND AN IODIDE OF SAID METAL TO YIELD SAID METAL AND A BYPRODUCT GAS, THE IMPROVEMENT, WHICH COMPRISES: HEATING A COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF CALCIUM CHLORIDE, CALCIUM FLUORIDE, MAGNESIUM FLUORIDE, AND MIXTURES THEREOF TO FORM A MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND, SAID COMPOUND HAVING A BOILING POINT THAT LIES ABOVE THE MELTING POINT OF SAID METAL, SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND BEING HEATED TO A TEMPERATURE THAT LIES IN THE RANGE BETWEEN ABOVE THE MELTING POINT OF SAID METAL AND THE BOILING POINT OF SAID COMPOUND; INTRODUCING SAID HALIDE INTO SAID DISPERSING SAID HALIDE WITHIN SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND, SAID HALIDE BEING SELECTED FROM SAID GROUP OF HALIDES FOR ITS CAPACITY TO DISSOCIATE THERMALLY WITHIN SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND WITHIN SAID TEMPERATURE RANGE, SO THAT SAID DISPERSED HALIDE DISSOCIATES THERMALLY WITHIN SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND TO YIELD PARTICLES OF SAID METAL DISPERSED WITHIN AND COLLECTED BY SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND AND A BYPRODUCT GAS THAT SEPARATES FROM SAID COLLECTED METAL PARTICLES BY RISING TO AND BEING WITHDRAWN FROM THE SURFACE OF SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND; AND FLOATING SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND CONTAINING SAID DISPERSED METAL PARTICLES ON A MOLTEN POOL OF SAID METAL, SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID METAL BEING FORMED AS SAID METAL PARTICLES SETTLE THROUGH SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND TO COLLECT AND COALESCE AT THE BASE OF SAID MOLTEN POOL OF SAID COMPOUND.