SEPARATING AND RECOVERING METHOD FOR GERMANIUM FROM GLASS COMPOSITION CONTAINING GERMANIUM

• Main Authors: NAKAHARA MOTOHIRO, KUROBA TOSHIAKI
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 16.12.1982
• Subjects: CHEMISTRY; CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION ORPROCESSING OF GOODS; COMPOUNDS CONTAINING METALS NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSESC01D OR C01F; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; INORGANIC CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY; PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS; PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS; TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINSTCLIMATE CHANGE; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS

PURPOSE:To recover expensive germanium from a glass composition contg. germanium dioxide in a high yield by reducing the composition to convert the germanium dioxide into volatile lower oxide and by volatilizing and separating the oxide. CONSTITUTION:A glass composition contg. germanium dioxide is mixed with carbon powder and put in a heating furnace heated to >=500 deg.C. By feeding an inert gas into the furnace or evacuating the furnace, volatile matter volatilized at the high temp. part is discharged. The volatile matter is composed chiefly of germanium monoxide, hydrochloric acid and chlorine, and by capturing the discharged matter with a cooling trap, the germanium monoxide is recovered. Hydrogen may be used as a reducing agent in place of carbon.