Influence of anode current density on carbon parasitic reactions during electrolysis

In the electro-deoxidation process, carbon parasitic reaction (CO₃^2- + 4e^-=C + 3O^2-) usually occurs when using carbon materials as the anode, which leads to increase of the carbon content in the final metal and decrease of the current efficiency of the process. The aim of this work is to reduce the negative effect of carbon parasitic reaction on the electrolysis process by adjusting anode current density. The results indicate that lower graphite anode area can achieve higher current density, which is helpful to increase the nucleation site of CO₂ bubbles. Most of CO₂ would be released from the anode instead of dissolution in the molten CaCl₂ and reacting with O^2- to form CO₃^2-, thus decreasing the carbon parasitic reaction of the process. Furthermore, the results of the compared experiments show that when the anode area decreases from 172.78 to 4.99 cm², CO₂ concentration in the released gases increases significantly, the carbon mass content in the final metal product decreased from 1.09% to 0.13%, and the current efficiency increased from 6.65% to 36.50%. This study determined a suitable anode current density range for reducing carbon parasitic reaction and provides a valuable reference for the selection of the anode in the electrolysis process.     

Molecule-confined modification of graphitic C3N4 to design mesopore-dominated Fe-N-C hybrid electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction

To design inexpensive carbon catalysts and enhance their oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity is critical for developing efficient energy-conversion systems. In this work, a novel Fe-N-C hybrid electrocatalyst with carbon nanolayers-encapsulated Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles is synthesized successfully by utilizing the molecular-level confinement of graphitic C₃N₄ structures via hemin biomaterial. Benefiting from the Fe-N structure prevalent on the carbon nanosheets and large mesopore-dominated specific surface area, the synthesized catalyst under optimized conditions shows excellent electrocatalytic performance for ORR with an E_ORR at 1.08 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) and an E_1/2 at 0.87 V vs. RHE, and outstanding long-term stability, which is superior to commercial Pt/C catalysts (E_ORR at 1.04 V versus RHE and E_1/2 at 0.84 V versus RHE). Moreover, the low hydrogen peroxide yield (<11%) and average electron transfer number (~3.8) indicate a four-electron ORR pathway. Besides, the maximum power density of the home-made Zn-air battery using the obtained catalyst is 97.6 mW cm⁻². This work provides a practical route for the synthesis of cheap and efficient ORR electrocatalysts in metal-air battery systems.     

Hydrogen from wet air and sunlight in a tandem photoelectrochemical cell

A solid-state photoelectrochemical (SSPEC) cell is an attractive approach for solar water splitting, especially when it comes to monolithic device design. In a SSPEC cell the electrodes distance is minimized, while the use of polymer-based membranes alleviates the need for liquid electrolytes, and at the same time they can separate the anode from the cathode. In this work, we have made and tested, firstly, a SSPEC cell with a Pt/C electrocatalyst as the cathode electrode, under purely gaseous conditions. The anode was supplied with air of 80% relative humidity (RH) and the cathode with argon. Secondly, we replaced the Pt/C cathode with a photocathode consisting of 2D photocatalytic g-C₃N₄, which was placed in tandem with the photoanode (tandem-SSPEC). The tandem configuration showed a three-fold enhancement in the obtained photovoltage and a steady-state photocurrent density. The mechanism of operation is discussed in view of recent advances in surface proton conduction in absorbed water layers. The presented SSPEC cell is based on earth-abundant materials and provides a way towards systems of artificial photosynthesis, especially for areas where water sources are scarce and electrical grid infrastructure is limited or nonexistent. The only requirements to make hydrogen are humidity and sunlight.     

Microstructure and physical-mechanical properties evolution of pure tantalum processed with hard cyclic viscoplastic deformation

The techniques of equal channel angular pressing and hard cyclic viscoplastic deformation were used to make changes in the microstructure and physical-mechanical properties of commercially pure tantalum. For the experiments, we used double electron beam melted oligocrystalline tantalum billet that was previously heat treated at 1100 °C for 1 h and processed by equal channel angular pressing with a wide range of equivalent von Mises strain (ℇ_VM = 0÷13.8) imposed on materials. At follows, the samples with stepped cross sections were tested on a materials testing setup Instron-8516 at room temperature. These changes in tantalum were determined depending on the tension-compression strain amplitude, strain rate, cycling frequency and number of cycles. The effects of processing routines on changes in the microstructure were investigated using scanning electron microscope and X-ray techniques. The mechanical and physical properties changes were characterized using hardness, density and electrical conduction measure techniques. The fracture mechanics change was studied by mini samples tensile testing up to fracture. The results show that during hard cyclic viscoplastic deformation of equal channel processed samples, with different processing histories, the tensile strength, hardness, plasticity, density, electrical conductivity, Young's modulus, etc. are changed. These changes in tantalum were characterized and analyzed.     

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Mg–RE–TM Cast Alloys Containing Long Period Stacking Ordered Phases: A Review

Casting magnesium alloys hold the greatest share of magnesium application products due to their short processing period, low cost and near net shape forming. Compared with conventional commercial magnesium alloys or other Mg–RE-based alloys, the novel Mg–RE–TM cast alloys with long period stacking ordered(LPSO) phases usually possess a higher strength and are promising candidates for aluminum alloy applications. Up to now, two ways: alloying design and casting process control(including subsequent heat treatments), have been predominantly employed to further improve the mechanical properties of these alloys. Alloying with other elements or ceramic particles could alter the solidifi cation pattern of alloys, change the morphology of LPSO phases and refi ne the microstructures. Diff erent casting techniques(conventional casting, rapidly solidifi cation, directional solidifi cation, etc.) introduce various microstructure characteristics, such as dendritic structure, nanocrystalline, metastable phase, anisotropy. Further heat treatments could activate the transformation of various LPSO structures and precipitation of diverse precipitates. All these evolutions exert great impacts on the mechanical properties of the LPSO-containing alloys. However, the underlying mechanisms still remain a subject of debate. Therefore, this review mainly provides the state of the art of the casting magnesium alloys research and the accompanying challenges and summarizes some topics that merit future investigation for developing high-performance Mg–RE–TM cast alloys.     

An improved method for the hot strip mill production scheduling problem

In most research on the hot strip mill production scheduling problem (HSMPSP) arising in the steel industry, it is accepted that a schedule with lower penalty caused by jumps of width, hardness, and gauge will result in lower roller wear, so it is regarded as a better schedule. However, based on the analysis of production processes, it is realised that rolling each coil also cause roller wear. In order to assessing the roller wear associated with production scheduling more precisely, it is necessary to consider it as another factor besides those jumps, especially when complicated constraints are involved. In this paper, an improved method is proposed to quantify the expected wear of the rollers done by those jumps and rolling processes. Then the HSMPSP whose objective is to maximise the total length of all scheduled coils is formulated as a team orienteering problem with time windows and additional production constraints. A heuristic method combining an improved Ant Colony Extended algorithm with local search procedures dedicated to HSMPSP is developed. Finally, computational results on instances generated based on production data from an integrated steel mill in China indicate that the proposed algorithm is a promising solution specific to HSMPSP.     

Effect of strain path change on the through-thickness microstructure during tantalum rolling

High purity tantalum was respectively processed by unidirectional rolling (UR) and clock rolling (CR), and the through-thickness microstructures were investigated by multiple characterization techniques including electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), Vickers hardness (HV) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Results show that the through-thickness stored energy distribution in CR specimens is more homogeneous than in UR specimens due to uniform texture distribution. {111} grains possess larger Schmid factors and the corresponding Schmid factor difference ratio than {100} grains, indicating the activation of uniserial slipping in {111} grains, which leads to inhomogeneous deformation and higher stored energy. Besides, X-ray line profile analysis (XLPA) suggests that the stored energy of {111} grains increases successively from the surface to center layer, regardless of strain paths, due to the influence of redundant friction on the surface layers. While the occurrence of multiple slipping in {100} grains leads to homogeneous deformation and lower stored energy.     

时效工艺对纳米结构2297铝锂合金力学性能与微观组织的影响

采用535 ℃×2 h固溶制度,将热锻态2297铝锂合金固溶水淬后冷轧,冷轧压下量为95%,然后将轧制样品在不同温度(120~190 ℃)和时间(0~80 h)范围内进行时效处理。采用拉伸、扫描电镜(SEM)和透射电镜(TEM)等测试方法,分析时效温度和时间对铝锂合金组织与性能的影响。结果表明:时效前的大塑性变形能获得纳米结构组织,能促进T₁相均匀细小地析出,缩短合金达到峰时效的时间,最终成功制备了高强高塑性铝锂合金。在120~140 ℃温区内时效时,时效温度越高,达到峰时效的时间越短、强度越高。140 ℃达到峰时效时间缩短为40 h,此时合金的抗拉强度、屈服强度和伸长率分别为525 MPa、478 MPa和7.7%,主要强化相为细小的T₁相。在170~190 ℃温区内时效时,时效温度越高,达到峰时效的时间越短,但抗拉强度与屈服强度迅速下降。170 ℃时效8 h达到峰时效状态,此时合金的抗拉强度、屈服强度和伸长率分别是503 MPa、462 MPa和5.0%,主要强化相仍为T₁相,但已经明显粗化。     

Soft-Magnetic High-Entropy AlCoFeMnNi Alloys with Dual-Phase Microstructures Induced by Annealing

The simultaneous enhancement of magnetic and mechanical properties is desirable but challenging for soft-magnetic materials.A fabrication strategy to meet this requirement is therefore in high demand.Herein,bulk equiatomic dual-phase AlCoFeMnNi high-entropy alloys were fabricated via a magnetic levitation induction melting and casting process followed by annealing at 700-1000℃,and their microstructures as well as mechanical and magnetic properties were investigated.The as-cast alloy possessed a single metastable B2-ordered solid solution that decomposed upon annealing into a dual-phase structure comprising an Al-and Ni-rich body-centered cubic(BCC) matrix and Fe-and Mn-rich face-centered cubic(FCC)precipitates both in the grain interior and along the grain boundaries.The magnetic and mechanical properties were closely related to the relative volume fraction of FCC in the alloy.The FCC volume fraction could be increased by increasing the annealing temperature,thereby offering tunable properties.The optimal annealing temperature for balanced magnetic and mechanical properties was found to be 800℃.The alloy annealed at this temperature had an average BCC grain size of 12±3μm and FCC volume fraction of 41±4%.Correspondingly,the s aturation magnetization and coercivity reached 82.57 Am~2/kg and 433 A/m,respectively.The compressive yield strength and fracture strength were 1022 and 2539 MPa,respectively,and the plasticity was 33%.Owing to its adjustable microstructure and properties,the AlCoFeMnNi alloy has potential for use as a multi-functional soft-magnetic material.