Amax Incorporated

Jerry D Baker

Roger F Sebenik

John M Laferty

Harry W Meyer, Deceased

William H Ceckler

Molybdenum is recovered from an organic material, such as a spent epoxidation catalyst, by heating the material in a stream of non-oxidizing gas at a temperature of at least about 400.degree. C. to evolve the organic in the gas stream from which it is recovered and to leave a powdery residue containing essentially all of the molybdenum.

Recovery of molybdenum from spent catalyst solutions obtained from

A continuous process for producing a substantially dense pelletized metallic molybdenum product from an agglomerated molybdenum trioxide containing feed material in which the feed material is continuously charged at a controlled rate into a reactor formed with a first reaction maintained at a controlled first temperature and containing a first hydrogen-containing atmosphere having a controlled composition for effecting the exothermic reduction of molybdenum trioxide to molybdenum dioxide, whereafter the partially reduced pelletized feed is transferred at a controlled rate into a second reaction zone at a controlled higher temperature and incorporating a second hydrogen-containing atmosphere of a controlled different composition to effect an endothermic reduction of substantially all of the molybdenum dioxide to metallic molybdenum, which upon subsequent cooling is recovered as a pelletized product suitable for use in steelmaking, other metal alloy production, melting, chemical reaction operations and the like. The invention further contemplates a continuous single-stage process for producing a pelletized molybdenum dioxide product from a pelletized molybdenum trioxide feed material and a continuous single-stage process for producing a pelletized substantially metallic molybdenum product from a pelletized molybdenum dioxide feed material.

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Ann Arbor, MI, United States of America

Jerry D Baker