Work

Production of metallic tungsten from a multicomponent mineral concentrate by reduction in a high-temperature plasma-chemical process

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: This study investigates high-temperature plasma-chemical synthesis (PCS) and plasma-chemical reduction (PCSR) for the production of metallic tungsten (W) from a multicomponent scheelite concentrate using B 4 C as the reducing agent. A method was developed that combines the decomposition of the mineral matrix with the subsequent synthesis of tungsten-containing phases under high-frequency arc plasma conditions. Particular attention was paid to mathematical modeling of the process; a polynomial neural network model (PNNM) was proposed to parameterize the system of differential equations of the process and to account for nonlinear and synergistic relationships between key factors – temperature, current, plasma-forming gas flow rate, feedstock particle size, and B 4 C content. The model enabled prediction of target product yields and identification of optimal combinations of process parameters. The influence of boron carbide content (20–60 wt. %) on the phase composition of the synthesis products was experimentally investigated. Dendritic structures consisting of metallic tungsten, tungsten carbides (WC and W 2 C), and tungsten borides (WB and W 2 B) were found to form at B 4 C contents ranging from 35 to 50 wt. %. Subsequent ultrasonic cleaning efficiently separated tungsten dendrites from phases containing accompanying compounds, yielding a tungsten concentrate containing >95 wt. % W. The results demonstrate that a combined approach integrating plasma-chemical technology and mathematical modeling is promising for the energy-efficient processing of refractory ores that are difficult to beneficiate, particularly scheelite concentrate from the Russian Far East.

Source: Izvestiya Non-Ferrous Metallurgy

DOI: 10.17073/0021-3438.2025.497c.1741

Authors: D. I. Balakhonov, S. V. Nikolenko, N. S. Konovalova

Institutions: Institute of Materials Science of the Khabarovsk Scientific Center, Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Tectonics and Geophysics named after Y.A. Kosygin

Language: English

Topic: Vacuum and Plasma Arcs

Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Responsible consumption and production

Open Access status: hybrid

Funder: Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation