Method for recovering a usable alloy from titanium scrap

Claim 1

The method of obtaining a weldable, forgeable, ductile, corrosion resistant product alloy from scrap metal alloy of a major component of titanium having additives including at least in excess of 2 per cent of aluminum, and comprising not in excess of about 2 per cent interstitial impurities including one or more of the elements nitrogen, carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, which comprises the steps of: cleansing the said scrap metal to remove scale comprising oxides and nitrides and hydrocarbons, charging said cleansed scrap metal into a furnace in a vacuum-tight housing evacuated to a pressure not exceeding about 5 × 10.sup. -4 torr, said furnace comprising an open-faced hearth section having an inlet end and a casting station spaced apart from and disposed downstream from said inlet end, melting the said scrap metal charge in said furnace by electron beam bombardment at the inlet end of said hearth section thereby causing said molten charge to drip down onto said open-faced hearth section to form a stream flowing along said hearth section in the direction of said casting station, exposing said molten scrap stream flowing along said hearth section to further electron beam bombardment at one or more points spaced apart from said inlet end causing the higher vapor pressure elements thereof including at least a portion of said aluminum to become volatilized and distilled off, and collecting the remaining portion of said molten scrap stream in said casting station permitting it to flow into and solidify in a mold.

Claim 2

The method of obtaining a weldable, forgeable, ductile, corrosion resistant product alloy from scrap metal alloy of a major component of titanium having additives including at least in excess of 2 per cent of aluminum, and comprising not in excess of about 2 per cent interstitial impurities including one or more of the elements nitrogen, carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, which comprises the steps of: cleansing the said scrap metal to remove scale comprising oxides and nitrides and hydrocarbons, charging said cleansed scrap metal into a furnace in a vacuum-tight housing evacuated to a pressure not exceeding about 5 × 10.sup. -4 torr, said furnace comprising an open-faced hearth section having an inlet end and a casting station spaced apart from and disposed downstream from said inlet end, melting the said scrap metal charge in said furnace by electron beam bombardment at the inlet end of said hearth section thereby causing said molten charge to drip down onto said open-faced hearth section to form a stream flowing along said hearth section in the direction of said casting station, exposing said molten scrap stream flowing along said hearth section to further electron beam bombardment at one or more points spaced apart from said inlet end causing the higher vapor pressure elements thereof including at least a portion of said aluminum to become volatilized and distilled off, and collecting the remaining portion of said molten scrap stream in said casting station permitting it to flow into and solidify in a mold.