Process for recovering the salt constituents from hardening-shop salt baths

Process for recovering the alkali metal and alkaline earth metal chlorides from used salts that accumulate in the course of the heat treatment of steel parts in salt baths, comprising;

• dissolving the used-salt constituents in water, separating the insoluble residue, eradicating any cyanides present, and
• fractionally crystallizing the dissolved salts, by the steps of,
• removing carbonates and hydroxides by the addition of hydrochloric acid,
• adding sodium chloride and calcium chloride in a ratio of 1:1 to 5:1, whereby for every 300 g/l of used salt in the solution 150 to 350 g sodium chloride and 30 to 150 g calcium chloride are added
• maintaining the temperature of the salt bath from -5.degree. to +20.degree. C.,
• crystallizing out barium chloride,
• adding calcium chloride to a concentration between 150 and 400 g/l,
• maintaining the temperature of the salt bath from 40.degree. to 120.degree. C.,
• crystallizing out sodium chloride,
• concentrating the salt bath solution,
• crystallizing out sodium chloride and barium chloride,
• concentrating salt bath solution,
• crystallizing out a double salt consisting of potassium chloride and calcium chloride,
• dissolving the double salt at 35.degree.-40.degree. C. in a 20to 35% solution of calcium chloride, and
• maintaining the bath temperature at 5.degree. to 20.degree. C.,
• crystallizing out potassium chloride,
• evaporating the remaining salt bath solution, and
• recovering calcium chloride.