Electrochemical behavior of Zr(IV) and co-reduction synthesis of Al-Zr alloys in KF-AlF3-Al2O3-ZrO2 molten salt

The electrochemical behavior of Zr(IV) on a molybdenum (Mo) electrode in a KF-AlF 3 -Al 2 O 3 -ZrO 2 molten salt system was studied using cyclic voltammetry (CV), square-wave voltammetry (SWV) and chronopotentiometry (CP). The reduction process of Zr(IV) was found to follow a two-step, two-electron transfer mechanism: Zr(IV)+2e − →Zr(II) and Zr(II)+2e − →Zr(0). The reduction process was quasi-reversible and controlled by diffusion. Al-Zr alloys were successfully obtained on Mo and liquid aluminum electrodes by potentiostatic electrodeposition . Flower-like AlZr 3 and irregular granular Al 3 Zr were obtained on the Mo electrode, which were mainly attributed to the electrochemical co-reduction of Al(III) and Zr(IV) in the molten salt. Three Al-Zr alloy phases, Al 3 Zr , Al 3 Zr 2, and Al 2 Zr, were obtained on the liquid aluminum electrode, among which Al 3 Zr was dominant in the product, followed by Al 3 Zr 2 .