Alkaline leaching of titanium from ilmenite of Irshansk deposit

X-ray spectral studies of the chemical composition of Irshansk ilmenite concentrates showed that it is leukoxenized mineral with a high (up to 79%) content of titanium oxide and inclusions of pseudorutile. The process of alkaline leaching of Ti4+ from ilmenite is investigated in the work. The study of the temperature effect on the reaction of ilmenite with potassium hydroxide at atmospheric pressure revealed that a temperature of 453 K is sufficient to obtain potassium titanate. A further increase in temperature does not provide a significant increase in the yield of water-soluble titanium. It is found that the optimal and sufficient ratio between ilmenite and potassium hydroxide is 1:2. An increase in the amount of potassium hydroxide in the reaction mixture is unsuitable, since it reduces the yield of soluble titanium and the final product will have a high alkalinity due to the presence of alkali which did not react. The main process of leaching with the formation of solid melt is completed in the first 30 minutes of the process. Infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction showed that potassium titanate (K2TiO3) is formed under the studied conditions of alkaline leaching of ilmenite.

MXene potassium titanate nanowire/sulfonated polyether ether ketone (SPEEK) hybrid composite proton exchange membrane for photocatalytic water splitting

A cross-linked sulfonated polyether ether ketone (C-SPEEK) was incorporated with MXene/potassium titanate nanowire (MKT-NW) as a filler and applied as a proton exchange membrane for photocatalytic water splitting.