Solid Oxide Membrane Electrolysis with Rotating Cathode (SOMERC), a Low-Cost Process for High Purity Titanium

Massachusetts Institute Of Technology, Cambridge MA

Investigators

Abstract

The objective of this research is to assess the feasibility of a new process called "Solid Oxide Membrane Electrolysis with Rotating Cathode (SOMERC)" for making titanium metal from titanium dioxide at low cost. The approach of this research is to develop two innovative design features to avoid the two properties of titanium, which make it expensive. By producing solid metal, it avoids working with the extremely reactive liquid titanium; and the solid oxide membrane on the anode avoids a problem called ion cycling which reduces the efficiency of producing certain metals such as titanium, chromium and tantalum. This proof of concept grant will fund experiments to determine the suitability of the solid oxide membrane as the anode for titanium production, and computer simulations to determine whether the rotating cathode will produce dense solid metal as desired. If these studies succeed, then the SOMERC process should work as designed. Titanium is a high-strength low-density metal with outstanding corrosion resistance used in demanding applications from aerospace to chemical industry equipment to offshore oil drilling platforms. Unfortunately, it is much more expensive than other engineering metals such as steel (including stainless steel), aluminum and magnesium alloys. As the fourth most abundant metal in the earth's crust, with oxide chemical bonding energy considerably lower than that of aluminum and magnesium, titanium has great potential to be produced at low cost. If successful, SOMERC will help to fulfill that potential, forcing industry to re-think the role of titanium in applications from automobiles to consumer appliances and others limited only by the imagination of engineers. Furthermore, this project will also provide an example of low-cost environmentally benign process development for engineering education. And independent of its commercial success, the science behind SOMERC will form the basis of educational case studies in electrochemistry and process engineering