Molten Salt Electrometallurgy

Abstract

Molten salt is a wonder liquid with many superlatives to its name. It possesses low volatility, good heat transfer capacity, high electrical and thermal conductivity, radiation insensitivity, and low viscosity up to 1773 K. It is a universal electrolyte, chemical reaction medium, and energy storage medium while opening new opportunities for ecologically-safe, economically favourable methods for materials processing. Predominant Coulomb interaction between particles in molten salt makes it the best medium for physical and computer simulation of liquid structure and properties. Here we investigate molten salt electrometallurgy and related processes, and attempt to identify future mathematical modelling directions in which the field is likely to develop.