Producing titanium particulates from in situ titanium-zinc intermetallic

A process for producing titanium powder, the process comprising:

• introducing titanium halide vapor into a liquid alloy of zinc and a reducing metal, beyond the solubility limit of titanium in zinc, at a temperature between 650.degree.-907.degree. C., to precipitate a zinc-titanium intermetallic compound in a reactor;
• removing the precipitate from the reactor and crushing it to form fine particles;
• and
• evaporatively separating the zinc from the fine particles to produce the titanium powder.

A process for producing titanium powder, the process comprising:

• introducing titanium halide vapor into a liquid alloy of zinc and a reducing metal beyond the solubility limit of titanium in zinc to precipitate solid zinc-titanium intermetallic compounds and produce a liquid salt comprised of the reducing metal and a halide, which salt is immiscible with the liquid alloy and intermetallic compounds, the compounds forming and accumulating as a solid at an interface between the salt and liquid alloy;
• removing the solid from the interface;
• crushing the solid;
• and
• evaporatively separating the zinc from the crushed solid.

A process for producing titanium powder, the process comprising:

• introducing titanium tetrachloride vapor into a liquid alloy of zinc and magnesium, at a temperature above the peritectic decomposition temperature of Zn.sub.3 Ti in an inert atmosphere at a pressure of about one atmosphere, beyond the solubility limit of titanium in zinc to precipitate a zinc-titanium intermetallic compound and an immiscible liquid salt layer comprised of MgCl.sub.2, the compound forming and accumulating at an interface between the salt layer and liquid alloy;
• removing the compound from the interface;
• and
• evaporatively separating the zinc from the crushed compound.