Abstract: A method for passivating metal-containing powder condensate and the resulting passivated metal. A metal-containing powder condensate comprising at least one metal is combined with at least one binder and at least one solvent to form a slurry, wherein the solvent only partially dissolves the powder-binder mixture. The resulting slurry is dried to remove excess solvent, forming a passivated metal-binder solid cake.

Abstract: Raw material feed into an electric arc furnace (“EAF”) is melted into heated liquid metal at a controlled temperature with impurities and inclusions removed as a separate liquid slag layer. The heated liquid metal is removed from the EAF into a passively heatable ladle wherein it is moved into a refining station where they are placed into a inductively heated refining holding vessel and wherein vacuum oxygen decarburization is applied to remove carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and other undesirable impurities from the liquid metal. The ladle and liquid metal is then transferred to a refining station/gas atomizer having a controlled vacuum and inert atmosphere wherein the liquid metal is poured from an inductively heated atomizing holder vessel into a heated tundish at a controlled rate wherein high pressure inert gas is applied through a nozzle to create a spray of metal droplets forming spherical shapes as the droplets that cool and fall into a bottom formed in the chamber.