Process for producing a vaporized mixture of aluminum and titanium halides

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR PRODUCING TITANIUM DIOXIDE, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING CHARGING DISCRETE ALUMINUM METAL PARTICLES INTO A REACTOR WHILE FLUIDIZING THEREIN A BED MADE UP OF ALUMINUM METAL PARTICLES AND A LARGER PORTION OF FINELY DIVIDED PARTICLES OF AN INERT SOLID, THE FLUIDIZING MEANS BEING A GASEOUS MIXTURE OF TITANIUM TETRAHALIDE AND A HALOGEN HAVING AN ATOMIC NUMBER OF 17 TO 53, MAINTAINING THE TEMPERATURE OF THE FLUIDIZING BED BELOW THE SOFTENING TEMPERATURE OF SAID ALUMINUM PARTICLES AND ABOVE THE CONDENSATION TEMPERATURE OF THE RESULTING ALUMINUM HALIDE PRODUCT BY REGULATING THE QUANTITY AND TEMPERATURE OF THE FLUIDIZING MEANS AND THE HEIGHT OF SAID BED, AND PASSIGN THE VAPOROUS MIXTURE OF ALUMINUM TRIHALIDE AND TITANIUM TETRAHALIDE WHICH EVOLVES FROM THE REACTOR INTO A REACTOR FOR THE VAPOR PHASE OXIDATION OF THE TITANIUM TETRAHALIDE.