Electrolysis of Ti₂CO solid solution prepared by TiC and TiO₂

TiO₂ can be reduced by TiC at temperatures in excess of 1000 °C, under vacuum conditions. The resulting product was found to show the structures of a Ti₂CO solid solution, which has excellent conductivity like a metal. A series of experiments have been performed on the possibility of titanium electrolysis, using a Ti₂CO solid solution as an anode, in a NaCl-KCl melt. Carbon monoxide (CO) was monitored at the anode during electrolysis when the potential was kept constant. The product on the cathode was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that titanium powders can be prepared through electrolysis of a Ti₂CO solid solution. The oxygen content of the titanium powders was measured and the result shows that it is lower than 300 ppm.