New formulation for reduction potentials of (Cu, Ni, Al, Zn)–lanthanide alloys – Implications for electrolysis-based pyroprocessing of spent nuclear fuel

In-situ anodic precipitation process for highly efficient separation of aluminum alloys

Electrorefining process has been widely used to separate and purify metals, but it is limited by deposition potential of the metal itself. Here we report in-situ anodic precipitation (IAP), a modified electrorefining process, to purify aluminium from contaminants that are more reactive. During IAP, the target metals that are more cathodic than aluminium are oxidized at the anode and forced to precipitate out in a low oxidation state. This strategy is fundamentally based on different solubilities of target metal chlorides in the NaAlCl₄ molten salt rather than deposition potential of metals. The results suggest that IAP is able to efficiently and simply separate components of aluminum alloys with fast kinetics and high recovery yields, and it is also a valuable synthetic approach for metal chlorides in low oxidation states.

Traditional electrorefining process is limited by deposition potential of the metal itself. Here, the authors explore an in-situ anodic precipitation process based on different solubility of target metal chlorides that can efficiently separate components of aluminum alloys.

PtSn Nanoalloy Thin Films as Anode Catalysts in Methanol Fuel Cells

Reactions of SnX₂ (X = Cl, Br) with [PtMe₂(bipy)], 1, (bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine), followed by NaBH₄ reduction at the toluene/water interface in the presence or absence of graphene oxide support rendered PtSn nanoalloy thin films. They were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The electrocatalytical activity of the PtSn thin films was investigated in the methanol oxidation reaction. Our studies showed that the PtSn/reduced-graphene oxide (RGO) thin film gave better catalytic results for MOR in comparison to bare PtSn or Pt thin films. A maximum j_f/j_b ratio (j_f and j_b are the maximum current densities in the forward and backward scans, respectively) of 6.77 was obtained for the PtSn/RGO thin film deriving from the 1 + SnBr₂ + NaBH₄ sequence.