Preparation of fused salt electrolytes

Claim 1

A PROCESS OF PREPARING A FUSED SALT COMPOSITION ADAPTED TO BE ELECTROLYZED WHICH COMPRISES: PROVIDING A REFRACTORY VESSEL; ESTABLISHING A FUSED SALT BATH CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF AT LEAST ONE HALIDE FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF ALKALI METAL HALIDES AND ALKALINE EARTH METAL HALIDES; PROVIDING A CONTAINER ADAPTED TO CONTAIN MATERIAL TO BE CHLORINATED AND CONSISTING OF A TUBULAR ELEMENT CONFINING THE MATERIAL TO BE CHLORINATED WITHIN A SOLID TUBULAR UPPER PORTION AND A POROUS LOWER PORTION; CHARGING INTO SAID CONTAINER AN OXYGEN-CONTAINING COMPOUND OF AN ELEMENT OTHER THAN THE ALKALI METALS AND ALKALINE EARTH METALS AND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP OF ELEMENTS FORMING CHLORIDES WHICH CANNOT BE RECOVERED FROM AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS IN SUBSTANTIALLY UNDECOMPOSED AND UNHYDROLYZED FORM AND WHOSE CHLORIDES ARE MISCIBLE IN FUSED ALKALI HALIDE MELTS, ALKALINE EARTH HALIDE MELTS AND MOLTEN MIXTURES OF ALKALI HALIDE AND ALKALINE EARTH HALIDES; IMMERSING SAID CONTAINER IN SAID FUSED SALT BATH SO THAT THE POROUS PORTION OF CONTAINER IS BENEATH THE SURFACE OF THE BATH; PASSING A CHLORINATING GAS INTO THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID CHARGE-FILLED CONTAINER, THEREBY FORMING A CHLORIDE OF THE ELEMENT WHOSE OXYGEN-CONTAINING COMPOUND CONSTITUTED THE CHARGE; AND RECOVERING SAID CHLORIDE IN SAID MOLTEN BATH BY PASSAGE OF SAID CHLORIDE THROUGH THE PORES OF SAID POROUS PORTION OF THE CHARGE-CONFINING CONTAINER AND DIRECTLY INTO THE SURROUNDING MOLTEN BATH.