Westinghouse Electric Corporation

John H Fatum

Maurice G Fey

Thomas N Meyer

An apparatus and process for the reduction in a plasma stream of a feed material including a comminuted metal oxide, a slag former and a reductant utilizing an enclosed horizontal reactor having a reduction chamber and a filter chamber therein separated by an either common partition having a plurality of holes therethrough or a refractory lined passageway. Coke filter media in the filter chamber act to filter out entrained molten metal contained in the plasma stream with the partition or passageway preventing entry of the coke from the filter chamber into the metal bath contained in the reduction chamber thereby limiting the amount of carbon entering the metal produced. Unreduced metal oxide is provided in the slag layer of the metal bath to maintain the stoichiometric ratio between the metal and reductant in the reduction chamber. In alternate embodiments of the invention, the reactor is provided with a sloped floor or with a rocker mechanism to control the residence time of the metal with the coke thus limiting the amount of carbon entering the metal product. The exhausted plasma stream can be recycled for preheating and prereducing the incoming feed material.

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Brecksville, OH, United States of America

John H Fatum