Applied Sciences
| Open Access |
DOI: Technological and Global Analysis of Integrated Titanium and Vanadium Extraction from Tebinbulak Deposit Ores
Abstract
This paper presents an in-depth, integrated technological and global analysis of the industrial development of Tebinbulak, one of the largest titanomagnetite ore deposits in Central Asia (located in the Karauzyak District of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, with on-balance ore reserves of ~2.0 billion tons). A comprehensive synthesis of experimental mineralogical and beneficiation test data for representative sample No. 7 of pyroxenite ores was carried out, including three-stage crushing, granulometric classification, dry and wet screening, and manual/laboratory magnetic separation. Optical microscopy was employed to investigate the structural and textural relationships among the ore phases: fine-dispersed exsolution textures of titanomagnetite solid solutions with lamellar ilmenite exsolutions in magnetite, isomorphic vanadium substitution within the magnetite crystal lattice, martitization (hematite replacement), and sulfide inclusions. By integrating advanced global scientific expertise (FactSage thermodynamic modeling, electric smelting reduction of metallized pellets at 1625–1650 °C, hydrochloric acid destruction, and low-temperature synergistic roasting of vanadium converter slag with a binary Na2C2O4/Na2CO3 mixture), an end-to-end, energy-efficient, environmentally benign, slime-free comprehensive flow sheet was developed and validated. The thermodynamic conditions preventing the formation of refractory titanium carbides (TiC) were established, achieving overall recoveries exceeding 99.5% for iron into hot metal, 92.6–94.4% for vanadium into commercial hot metal (with subsequent production of 98.73% pure V2O5), and selectively partitioning 94.1–99.0% of titanium into high-grade titania slag (42–46% TiO2) suitable for pigment-grade TiO2 synthesis.
Keywords
Tebinbulak, titanomagnetite, vanadium
References
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Copyright (c) 2026 Matkarimov Sohibjon, Turdiyeva Aziza
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