Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
160 words
A process for the recovery of metals in a furnace from the scrap from nickel-cadmium electric storage batteries which in addition to nickel and cadmium also contain organic substances and iron components, characterized in the steps of (a) opening the batteries and emptying them of their free electrolyte; (b) drying the scrap obtained from step (a); (c) removing the organic substances from the dried scrap by pyrolysis in said furnace by establishing a predetermined temperature and introducing a controlled atmosphere in the form of an inert gas such as nitrogen with the addition of between 3 and 12% of oxygen; and (d) thereafter distilling off the cadmium from the organic free residue of step (c) by vaporization in said furnace in a controlled reducing gas protective atmosphere at a further higher temperature followed by condensing the vapor to obtain the cadmium, (e) and recovering a residue inside the furnace in the form of a mixture of nickel and iron scrap.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
160 words
A process for the recovery of metals in a furnace from the scrap from nickel-cadmium electric storage batteries which in addition to nickel and cadmium also contain organic substances and iron components, characterized in the steps of (a) opening the batteries and emptying them of their free electrolyte; (b) drying the scrap obtained from step (a); (c) removing the organic substances from the dried scrap by pyrolysis in said furnace by establishing a predetermined temperature and introducing a controlled atmosphere in the form of an inert gas such as nitrogen with the addition of between 3 and 12% of oxygen; and (d) thereafter distilling off the cadmium from the organic free residue of step (c) by vaporization in said furnace in a controlled reducing gas protective atmosphere at a further higher temperature followed by condensing the vapor to obtain the cadmium, (e) and recovering a residue inside the furnace in the form of a mixture of nickel and iron scrap.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
18 words
A process according to claim 1, characterized in the step of supplying oxygen in the form of air.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
38 words
A process according to claim 1, characterized in that the operation (c) step is performed by gradually raising the temperature inside the furnace from a temperature of 100° C. to said predetermined temperature of up to 400° C.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
38 words
A process according to claim 1, characterized in that the operation (c) step is performed by gradually raising the temperature inside the furnace from a temperature of 100° C. to said predetermined temperature of up to 500° C.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
61 words
A process according to claim 1, characterized in that the operation (d) step includes the steps of vaporization of the cadmium, which may include cadmium oxide at said further temperature of up to 900° C. in the presence of said reducing protective gas, the condensation of the resulting cadmium vapour and the casting of the liquid cadmium metal into cadmium rods.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
19 words
A process according to claim 5, characterized in that the hydrogen gas is used as the reducing protective gas.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
A process according to claim 5, characterized in that a mixture of hydrogen gas and nitrogen gas is used as the reducing protective gas.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
29 words
A process according to claim 5, characterized in that the furnace is coupled in a sealed system including the step of circulating reducing protective gas inside said sealed system.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
31 words
A process according to claim 1 characterized in the step of fusing nickel and iron together at a temperature of about 1300° C. in the furnace for melting the iron-nickel scrap.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
41 words
A process according to claim 1, wherein the furnace is part of a system preparing the batteries by means of toothed rollers characterized in the step of opening the batteries in operation (a) by tearing them apart between said toothed rollers.