Equilibrium between titanium ions and high-purity titanium electrorefining in a NaCl-KCl melt

TiClx （x=2.17） was prepared by using titanium sponge to reduce the concentration of TiCl4 in a NaCl-KCl melt under negative pressure. The as-prepared NaCl-KCl-TiClx melt was employed as the electrolyte, and two parallel crude titanium plates and one high-purity titanium plate were used as the anode and cathode, respectively. A series of electrochemical tests were performed to investigate the influence of electrolytic parameters on the current efficiency and quality of cathodic products. The results indicated that the quality of cathodic products was related to the current efficiency, which is significantly dependent on the current density and the initial concentration of titanium ions. The significance of this study is the attainment of high-purity titanium with a low oxygen content of 30× 10^-6.

A review on liquid metals as cathodes for molten salt/oxide electrolysis

Compared with solid metals,liquid metals are considered more promising cathodes for molten slat/oxide electrolysis due to their fascinating advantages,which include strong depolarization effect,strong alloying effect,excellent selective separation,and low operating temperature.In this review,we briefly introduce the properties of the liquid metal cathodes and their selection rules,and then summarize development in liquid metal cathodes for molten salt electrolysis,specifically the extraction of Ti and separation of actinides and rare-earth metals in halide melts.We also review recent attractive progress in the preparation of liquid Ti alloys via molten oxide electrolysis by using liquid metal cathodes.Problems related to high-quality alloy production and large-scale applications are cited,and several research directions to further improve the quality of alloys are also discussed to realize the industrial applications of liquid metal cathodes.

Direct electrochemical N-doping to carbon paper in molten LiCl-KCl-Li3N

Graphite materials are widely used as electrode materials for electrochemical energy storage.N-doping is an effective method for enhancing the electrochemical properties of graphite.A novel one-step N-doping method for complete and compact carbon paper was proposed for molten salt electrolysis in the Li Cl-KCl-Li3 N system.The results show that the degree of graphitization of carbon paper can be improved by the electrolysis of molten salts,especially at 2.0 V.Nitrogen gas was produced at the anode and nitrogen atoms can substitute carbon atoms of carbon paper at different sites to create nitrogen doping during the electrolysis process.The doping content of N in carbon paper is up to 13.0 wt%.There were three groups of nitrogen atoms,i.e.quaternary N(N-Q),pyrrolic N(N-5),and pyridinic N(N-6)in N-doping carbon paper.N-doping carbon paper as an Al-ion battery cathode shows strong charge-recharge properties.

Effect of NaCl on synthesis of ZrB2 by a borothermal reduction reaction of ZrO2

ZrB2 powders were synthesized via a borothermal reduction reaction of ZrO2 with the assistance of NaCl under a flowing Ar atmosphere. The optimal temperature and reaction time were 1223 K and 3 h, respectively. Compared with the reactions conducted without the addition of NaCl, those performed with the addition of an appropriate amount of NaCl finished at substantially lower temperatures. However, the addition of too much NaCl suppressed this effect. With the assistance of NaCl, a special morphology of polyhedral ZrB2 particles covered with ZrB2 nanosheets was obtained. Moreover, the experimental results revealed that the special morphology was the result of the combined effects of B2O3 and NaCl. The formation of the special microstructure is explained on the basis of the “dissolution–recrystallization” mechanism.

Reduction of residual stress in porous Ti6Al4V by in situ double scanning during laser additive manufacturing

Selective laser melting(SLM)technology plays an important role in the preparation of porous titanium(Ti)implants with complex structures and precise sizes.Unfortunately,the processing characteristics of this technology,which include rapid melting and solidification,lead to products with high residual stress.Herein,an in situ method was developed to restrain the residual stress and improve the mechanical strength of porous Ti alloys during laser additive manufacturing.In brief,porous Ti6Al4V was prepared by an SLM three-dimensional(3D)printer equipped with a double laser system that could rescan each layer immediately after solidification of the molten powder,thus reducing the temperature gradient and avoiding rapid melting and cooling.Results indicated that double scanning can provide stronger bonding conditions for the honeycomb structure and improve the yield strength and elastic modulus of the alloy.Rescanning with an energy density of 75%resulted in 33.5%–38.0%reductions in residual stress.The porosities of double-scanned specimens were 2%–4%lower than those of singlescanned specimens,and the differences noted increased with increasing sheet thickness.The rescanning laser power should be reduced during the preparation of porous Ti with thick cell walls to ensure dimensional accuracy.

Editorial for special issue on high-temperature molten salt chemistry and technology

High-temperature molten salt consisting of metal cation and non-metal anion is a promising media to break the limits of aqueous solution due to high conductivity,wide electrochemical window,rapid mass transfer,high solubility to reactants,low vapor pressure,etc.In the past two hundred years,high-temperature molten salt chemistry and technology attract widely interests.Particularly,molten salt electrolysis as an indispensable metallurgy technology has been applied industrially for metal extraction of Al,rare earth,and alkali/alkaline-earth metals.It is well known that industrial aluminum electrolysis was invented by Hall and Heroult in the end of the 19 th century.It is a milestone and promotes the change of Al from noble metal to bulk metal.At present,the yield of Al has reached to 62 millions tons all over the world in 2019.High-temperature molten salt chemistry and technology has brought a revolutionary advancement to human life and infrastructure construction.