Titanium-vanadium slags produced upon the direct reduction of iron from titanomagnetite concentrates

The phase compositions of complex titanium-vanadium slags that form upon the processing (using the direct reduction of iron) of titanium-magnetite concentrates of ten CIS deposits are studied by X-ray diffraction and optical and scanning electron microscopies. Depending on the phase composition, these slags can be divided into the following three groups: spinellide, anosovite-spinellide, and anosovite slags. The general laws of element distribution between slag phases are determined. In the titanium-vanadium slags, vanadium is shown not to form individual phases and to enter into the compositions of solid solutions, namely, ansovite and spinellides. In ansovite, vanadium is present in the trivalent state in the form of V₂TiO₅. In the absence of the ansovite phase, vanadium concentrates in spinellide solid solutions, which are partly represented by MTiO₄ solutions. The solubility of vanadium in the spinellide MgAl₂O₄ is controlled by the MgO: Al₂O₃ molar ratio in a slag, and part of the aluminum is substituted by vanadium with the formation of an Mg(Al,V)₂O₄ solid solution only if aluminum is deficient.