• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.71-75
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• 2011

Corrosion properties of Al-0.3Ga-0.3Sn, Al-0.3Mn-0.3Ga, and Al-0.3Mn-0.3Sn alloys were examined to develop an anode material for Al-air battery with alkaline aqueous or ethanol electrolyte. The results of potentiodynamic polarization tests showed that the electrode potential of the Al alloys were lower than the pure Al, implying the cell voltage can be increased by using one of these alloys for an anode in 4 M KOH aqueous solution. The corrosion rate appeared to be increased by alloying Ga but to be reduced by Sn and Mn in the aqueous solution. The ethanol solution is expected to improve the cell performance in that the electrode potential and the corrosion rate of Al were lower in ethanol solution than in aqueous solution. However the Al-(Ga, Sn, Mn) alloys are not favorable in ethanol solution because of the high potential and corrosion rate.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.29-35
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• 2018

In this study, the electrochemical redox behavior of neodymium in non-aqueous electrolytes was investigated to confirm the possibility of neodymium metallurgy at room temperature. The non-aqueous electrolytes include ionic liquids such as $[C_4mim]PF_6$, $[C_4mim]Cl$, and $[P_{66614}]PF_6$, ethanol which are highly soluble in neodymium salts, and mixed electrolytes based on carbonate with highly electrochemical stability. The electrochemical redox properties of neodymium were better than those of other electrolytes in the case of the mixed electrolyte based on ethylene carbonate (EC)/di-ethylene carbonate (DEC). Ethanol was added to improve the physical properties of the mixed electrolyte. Thorough the analysis about ionic conductivity of EC/DEC ratio, ethanol content and $NdCl_3$ concentration, the best electrolyte composition was 50 vol% content of ethanol and 0.5 M of $NdCl_3$. Using cyclic voltametry and linear sweep voltametry, a current peak estimated at -3.8 V (vs. Pt-QRE) was observed as a limiting current of neodymium reduction. Potentiostatic electrolysis for 18 hours at room temperature at -6 V (vs. Pt-QRE) confirmed that metallic neodymium was electrodeposited.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.30-38
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• 2013

In this study, a catalyst slurry was prepared with a Pt/C catalyst, Nafion ionomer solution as a binder, an ionic liquid (IL) (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate), deionized water and ethanol as a solvent for the application to polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) at high-temperatures. The effect of the IL in the electrode of each design was investigated by performing a cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurement. Electrodes with different IL distributions inside and on the surface of the catalyst electrode were examined. During the CV test, the electrochemical surface area (ESA) obtained for the Pt/C electrode without ILs gradually decreased owing to three mechanisms: Pt dissolution/redeposition, carbon corrosion, and place exchange. As the IL content increased in the electrode, an ESA decrement was observed because ILs leaked from the Nafion polymer in the electrode. In addition, the CVs under conditions simulating leakage of ILs from the electrode and electrolyte were evaluated. When the ILs leaked from the electrode, minor significant changes in the CV were observed. On the other hand, when the leakage of ILs originated from the electrolyte, the CVs showed different features. It was also observed that the ESA decreased significantly. Thus, leakage of ILs from the polymer electrolyte caused a performance loss for the PEFCs by reducing the ESA. As a result, greater entrapment stability of ILs in the polymer matrix is needed to improve electrode performance.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.276-283
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• 2020

Alcohol-based solvents including ethanol (EtOH) and tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) are investigated instead of isopropanol (IPA), which is a common solvent for polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), as an alternative solvent for preparing the catalyst slurry with PTFE binder. As a result, the performance at 0.2 A/㎠ from the single cells from using catalyst slurries based on EtOH and TBA showed very similar value to that from the slurry using IPA, which implies the EtOH and TBA can be used as a solvent for the catalyst slurry. It is also confirmed by the very close values of the total resistance of the membrane electrode assemblies from the slurries using different solvents. In the energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) image, the shape of crack and dispersion of PTFE are changed according to the vapor pressure of the solvent.