Preparation of Co–Sn alloys by electroreduction of Co(II) and Sn(II) in molten LiCl–KCl

Electrochemical extraction of the fission element samarium from tin electrodes and its kinetic analysis in an electrolytic refining process in LiCl-KCl molten salts

The key fragment element samarium (Sm) has a large neutron absorption cross section, which can hinder the absorption of neutrons by uranium and negatively affect the nuclear reaction. In order to realize the nuclear fuel cycle, the extraction of Sm was studied on the basis of electrolytic refining after the dry process. The electrochemical properties of SmCl3 and SnCl2 in LiCl-KCl molten system were systematically investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV), square wave voltammetry (SWV), and open circuit potential (OCP). The diffusion coefficients of the Sn(II) and Sm(III) electrode processes were calculated to be 3.55–5.93 × 10−5 and 2.33–3.97 × 10−5 cm2 s−1, respectively. The co-reduction of Sm(III) and Sn(II) ions was studied. Sm was recycled by constant current electrolysis on the liquid Sn electrode, and the average extraction rate was about 94.23%. The samples were characterized and analyzed by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM), and the results showed that Sm extraction from liquid tin is feasible.

Sn(TFSI)2as a suitable salt for the electrodeposition of nanostructured Cu6Sn5–Sn composites obtained on a Cu electrode in an ionic liquid

Sn nanostructured thin films prepared by electrodeposition in an ionic liquid directly on a Cu substrate provided high performance as Li-ion negative electrodes.

Lead (Pb) interfacing with epitaxial graphene

Here, we report the electrochemical deposition of lead (Pb) as a model metal on epitaxial graphene fabricated on silicon carbide (Gr/SiC). The kinetics of electrodeposition and morphological characteristics of the deposits were evaluated by complementary electrochemical, physical and computational methods. The use of Gr/SiC as an electrode allowed the tracking of lead-associated redox conversions. The analysis of current transients passed during the deposition revealed an instantaneous nucleation mechanism controlled by convergent mass transport on the nuclei locally randomly distributed on epitaxial graphene. This key observation of the deposit topology was confirmed by low values of the experimentally-estimated apparent diffusion coefficient, Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies. First principles calculations showed that the nucleation of Pb clusters on the graphene surface leads to weakening of the interaction strength of the metal-graphene complex, and only spatially separated Pb adatoms adsorbed on bridge and/or edge-plane sites can affect the vibrational properties of graphene. We expect that the lead adatoms can merge in large metallic clusters only at defect sites that reinforce the metal-graphene interactions. Our findings provide valuable insights into both heavy metal ion electrochemical analysis and metal electroplating on graphene interfaces that are important for designing effective detectors of toxic heavy metals.

Pb electrodeposition from PbO in the urea/1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride at room temperature

In this study, we dissolved PbO in a new electrolyte urea/1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (EMIC) and electrochemically extracted Pb.

Investigation of the reaction progress between stannous chloride and zirconium in molten LiCl–KCl

LiCl–KCl–ZrCl₄ melt was prepared by displacement reaction between SnCl₂ and Zr, and the reaction progress was electrochemically monitored.