Abstract: There is provided a method of treating solid material, wherein the solid material includes target metallic material and one or more other metallic elements, wherein the target metallic material consists of at least one of tantalum and niobium, the method comprising contacting the solid material with a gaseous reagent material within a reaction zone, wherein the gaseous reagent material includes carbon tetrachloride.

Abstract: A process for treating a feed material composition includes a solid particulate precious metal material-rich feed material composition fraction and a solid particulate rare earth metal material-rich feed material composition fraction, in which the solid particulate precious metal material-rich feed material composition fraction includes one or more precious metals, and in which the solid particulate rare earth metal material-rich feed material composition fraction includes one or more rare earth metals. The process includes contacting the solid particulate feed material composition with a reducing agent within a reducing agent contacting zone to effect production of a reaction intermediate solid particulate material composition.

Abstract: An improved method of reducing a mixed metal oxide composition comprising oxides of nickel, cobalt, copper and iron in a hydrogen atmosphere to produce a mixture of the respective metals, the improvement wherein the atmosphere further comprises water vapor at a concentration, temperature and time to effect selective reduction of the oxides of nickel cobalt and copper relative to the iron oxide to produce the metallic mixture having a reduced ratio of metallic iron relative to metallic nickel, cobalt and copper.

Abstract: A process for the production of a purified PGM selected from the group consisting of platinum and rhodium from an impure PGM source, the process comprising (a) obtaining an anhydrous PGM halide from the impure PGM source; (b) treating the PGM halide with carbon monoxide at an effective temperature; pressure and time to form the PGM carbonyl halide; and (c) (i) wherein the PGM is platinum, heating the platinum carbonyl halide at an effective platinum decomposition temperature to produce the purified platinum; (ii) wherein the PGM is rhodium, heating the rhodium halide at an effective rhodium decomposition temperature to produce the purified rhodium; and (iii) wherein the platinum carbonyl carbonyl halide and the rhodium carbonyl halide are in a gaseous mixture, effecting step (i) at a temperature lower than the rhodium effective decomposition temperature prior to effecting step (ii). The process is of particular value in the recovery and recycle of PGM materials from vehicle exhaust catalytic converters.

Abstract: There is provided a process of treating a metalliferrous material including at least one metal material fraction. Each one of the at least one metal material fraction includes a respective metal, wherein the respective metal is a transition metal. Each one of the at least one metal material fraction also includes a respective first operative material fraction and a respective second operative material fraction. The respective first operative material fraction consists of an elemental form of the respective metal, and the respective second operative material fraction consists of at least one oxide of the respective metal. The method includes providing reagent material including at least one diatomic halogen and at least one aluminium halide. The reagent material is contacted with the metalliferrous material in a reaction zone so as to effect a reactive process which effects production of an intermediate reaction product including at least one produced metal halide.