Process for producing a sodium fluoaluminate composition having predetermined naf/alf3 ratio

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR PRODUCING A SODIUM FLUOALUMINATE COMPOSITION WITH A PREDETERMINED SODIUM FLUORIDE/ALUMINUM TRIFLUORIDE MOLAR RATIO BETWEEN 1.67 AND 2.65 HAVING SUBSTANTIALLY ALL OF ITS ALUMINUM TRIFLUORIDE CONTENT CHEMICALLY COMBINED WITH SODIUM FLUORIDE, COMPRISING THE STEPS OF INTIMATELY AND RAPIDLY MIXING TOGETHER A FIRST SOLUTION CONTAINING TWO COMPOUNDS SELECTED FROM THE GROUP WHICH CONSISTS OF A SODIUM HALIDE, AN ALUMINUM HALIDE AND HYDROFLUORIC ACID, AND A SECOND SOLUTION CONTAINING THE THIRD COMPOUND, THEREBY FORMING A SUSPENSION, SAID SODIUM HALIDE BEING PRESENT IN AN AMOUNT NOT EXCEEDING THE STOICHIOMETRIC EQUIVALENT OF SODIUM IN SAID SODIUM FLUOALUMINATE AND BEING IN A MOLAR RATIO WITH THE ALUMINUM OF SAID ALUMINUM HALIDE SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO SAID PREDETERMINED MOLAR RATIO. SAID HYDROFLUORIC ACID BEING PRESENT IN AN AMOUNT SELECTED SO THAT THE TOTAL QUANTITY OF FLUORIDE ION IN SAID SOLUTIONS IS SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THE STOICHIOMETRIC AMOUNT OF FLUORIDE IN THE SODIUM FLUOALUMINATE COMPOSITION OF PREDETERMINED SODIUM FLUORIDE/ALUMINUM TRIFLUORIDE MOLAR RATIO; AND CONDITIONING THE SUSPENSION BY CONTINUOUSLY STIRRING IT FOR A PERIOD OF AT LEAST ONE HOUR AT A TEMPERATURE ON THE ORDER OF 50*C.