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US-20260125814-A1 - SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR RECOVERY OF MOLTEN METAL

US20260125814A1US 20260125814 A1US20260125814 A1US 20260125814A1US-20260125814-A1

Abstract

Systems and methods for recovery of molten metal are generally described. Certain systems comprise a reactor (e.g., a reduction cell such as an electrolytic cell comprising an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte) comprising molten metal within a container; and a collection vessel at least partially contained within the container of the reactor, the collection vessel comprising an opening fluidically connected to the container of the reactor. Some systems comprise a reactor; and a collection vessel comprising a first opening fluidically connected to the reactor and a second opening fluidically connected to a source of gas (e.g., inert gas) and to a source of negative pressure.

Inventors

  • Thomas Anthony Villalon, Jr.
  • Benjamin David Brakenwagen
  • Richard Robert Salvucci

Assignees

  • Phoenix Tailings, Inc.

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20251229

Claims (20)

  1. 1 . A system, comprising: a reactor comprising molten metal within a container; and a removable collection vessel at least partially contained within the container of the reactor, the removable collection vessel comprising an opening fluidically connected to the container of the reactor.
  2. 2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the molten metal comprises a molten rare earth metal.
  3. 3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the reactor is a reduction cell.
  4. 4 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the reduction cell is an electrolytic cell comprising an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte.
  5. 5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the container is thermally insulated.
  6. 6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the removable collection vessel has a volume of at least 180 cm 3 .
  7. 7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein walls of the removable collection vessel comprise a refractory metal and/or a ceramic.
  8. 8 . The system of claim 1 , wherein a spatially averaged temperature within the container of the reactor is at least 675° C.
  9. 9 - 16 . (canceled)
  10. 17 . A system, comprising: a reactor; and a collection vessel comprising: a first opening fluidically connected to the reactor, and a second opening fluidically connected to a source of gas and to a source of negative pressure, wherein the reactor is a reduction cell.
  11. 18 . A system, comprising: a reactor; and a collection vessel; wherein the collection vessel is fluidically connected to the reactor, a source of gas, and a source of negative pressure, and wherein the reactor is a reduction cell.
  12. 19 . The system of claim 18 , wherein the source of the negative pressure is a vacuum pump.
  13. 20 . The system of claim 18 , wherein the source of gas is a source of inert gas.
  14. 21 - 23 . (canceled)
  15. 24 . The system of claim 18 , wherein the reduction cell is an electrolytic cell.
  16. 25 - 30 . (canceled)
  17. 31 . The system of claim 24 , wherein the electrolytic cell comprises an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte.
  18. 32 . The system of claim 18 , wherein the reactor comprises molten metal in a container.
  19. 33 . The system of claim 32 , wherein the molten metal comprises a molten rare earth metal.
  20. 34 . The system of claim 32 , wherein the container is thermally insulated.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/594,216, filed Mar. 4, 2024, and entitled “Systems and Methods for Recovery of Molten Metal,” which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/363,257 (now U.S. Pat. No. 11,952,674), filed Aug. 1, 2023, and entitled “Systems and Methods for Recovery of Molten Metal,” which is a division of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/174,330 (now U.S. Pat. No. 11,952,673), filed Feb. 24, 2023, and entitled “Systems and Methods for Recovery of Molten Metal,” which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/334,371, filed Apr. 25, 2022, and entitled “Systems and Methods for Recovery of Molten Metal,” each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes. GOVERNMENT SPONSORSHIP This invention was made with government support under Contract No. DE-AR0001500 awarded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). The government has certain rights in the invention. TECHNICAL FIELD Systems and methods for the recovery of molten metal are generally described. SUMMARY The present disclosure is directed to systems and methods for the recovery of molten metal. Certain aspects are related to the removal of molten metal from reactors such as reduction cells (e.g., electrolytic cells). The subject matter of the present disclosure involves, in some cases, interrelated products, alternative solutions to a particular problem, and/or a plurality of different uses of one or more systems and/or articles. Certain aspects are related to systems. In some embodiments, the system comprises a reactor comprising molten metal within a container; and a collection vessel at least partially contained within the container of the reactor, the collection vessel comprising an opening fluidically connected to the container of the reactor. In some embodiments, the system comprises a reactor; and a collection vessel, wherein the collection vessel is fluidically connected to the reactor, a source of gas, and a source of negative pressure. In certain embodiments, the system comprises a reactor; and a collection vessel comprising: a first opening fluidically connected to the reactor, and a second opening fluidically connected to a source of gas and to a source of negative pressure. Other advantages and novel features of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description of various non-limiting embodiments of the disclosure when considered in conjunction with the accompanying figures. In cases where the present specification and a document incorporated by reference include conflicting and/or inconsistent disclosure, the present specification shall control. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying figures, which are schematic and are not intended to be drawn to scale unless otherwise indicated. In the figures, each identical or nearly identical component illustrated is typically represented by a single numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component is labeled in every figure, nor is every component of each embodiment of the disclosure shown where illustration is not necessary to allow those of ordinary skill in the art to understand the disclosure. In the figures: FIGS. 1A-1C are cross-sectional schematic illustrations of systems for producing and extracting molten metal, according to certain embodiments; FIG. 2 is, in accordance with some embodiments, a container of a reactor; FIGS. 3A-3C are cross-sectional schematic illustrations of a system for producing and extracting molten metal, according to certain embodiments; and FIGS. 4A-4B are cross-sectional schematic illustrations showing the assembly of a collection vessel and conduit, in accordance with some embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Reactors, such as electrolytic cells, can be used to prepare metal materials, such as rare earth metal materials. For example, oxides of rare earth metals with relatively low melting points (e.g., lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, and neodymium) can be converted to halides (e.g., chlorides, fluorides, etc.) and then reduced within an electrolytic cell to produce halide gas at the anode of the electrolytic cell and liquid metal at the cathode of the electrolytic cell. Other processes can also be used. Extracting the metal from an electrolytic cell or other types of reduction cells or reactors in pure or substantially pure form has traditionally been very challenging. Current commercial practices utilize a ladle to extract rare earth elements from within the furnace cell. This practice is wasteful, however, due to losses attributable to spilling and the introduction of the molten metal to both the molten salt electrolyte and oxygen. Both the electrolyte and the oxygen introduce impurities within the rare earth material, resulting in