Parel Societe Anonyme

George Stephen James

Bruce Ian Dewar

Walter Rudolf Moergeli

There is disclosed an electrochemical process wherein an electrolyte is passed through one electrode compartment of an electrochemical cell, said one electrode compartment comprising a particulate electrode and being separated from a second electrode compartment of said electrochemical cell containing a counter-electrode by a separator having an ion-permeable wall inclined away from the vertical and towards the particulate electrode. The distribution of the particles of said particulate electrode in the electrolyte during the process is controlled in a manner such that there is formed within said one electrode compartment a first region which is adjacent to the ion-permeable wall and within which first region substantially all the particles are, for a large proportion of the time they spend in said first region, separated from each other, and a second region which is spaced from the ion-permeable wall and within which second region substantially all the particles are, for a large proportion of the time they spend in said second region, in contact with other particles, and substantially all the particles are circulated between said first and second regions. The invention has particular application to the electrodeposition of metals in which metal is electrodeposited onto the particles of a particulate cathode which are removed from the cathode compartment.

Electrochemical circulating bed cell

There is disclosed an electrochemical process wherein an electrolyte is passed through one electrode compartment of an electrochemical cell, said one electrode compartment comprising a particulate electrode and being separated from a second electrode compartment of said electrochemical cell containing a counter-electrode by a separator having an ion-permeable wall inclined away from the vertical and towards the particulate electrode. The distribution of the particles of said particulate electrode in the electrolyte during the process is controlled in a manner such that there is formed within said one electrode compartment a first region which is adjacent to the ion-permeable wall and within which first region substantially all the particles are, for a large proportion of the time they spend in said first region, separated from each other, and a second region which is spaced from the ion-permeable wall and within which second region substantially all the particles are, for a large proportion of the time they spend in said second region, in contact with other particles, and substantially all the particles are circulated between said first and second regions.

Electrochemical process

There is disclosed an electrochemical process and cell, the electrochemical cell comprising an anode compartment through which flows an anolyte and a cathode compartment through which flows a catholyte separated, at least in part, by an ion-permeable wall, wherein the operating pressures within the anode compartment and the cathode compartment are controlled in a manner such that there is not a large difference of pressure across said ion-permeable wall. The operating pressures are advantageously controlled by a flow impeder constituted by a plurality of perforated plates or baffles disposed within an electrode compartment of the cell.

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Johannesburg, South Africa

George Stephen James