Electrochemical deposition of Nd and Nd–Fe alloy from Cu<sub>6</sub>Nd alloy in a NaCl–KCl–NdCl<sub>3</sub> melt

Chen-teng Sun; Qian Xu; Yan-ping Xiao; Yong-xiang Yang

doi:10.1007/s12613-020-2130-0

Volume 27 Issue 12

Dec. 2020

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Article Navigation > International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials > 2020 > 27(12): 1650-1656

Chen-teng Sun, Qian Xu, Yan-ping Xiao, and Yong-xiang Yang, Electrochemical deposition of Nd and Nd–Fe alloy from Cu₆Nd alloy in a NaCl–KCl–NdCl₃ melt, Int. J. Miner. Metall. Mater., 27(2020), No. 12, pp. 1650-1656. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12613-020-2130-0

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Chen-teng Sun, Qian Xu, Yan-ping Xiao, and Yong-xiang Yang, Electrochemical deposition of Nd and Nd–Fe alloy from Cu6Nd alloy in a NaCl–KCl–NdCl3 melt, Int. J. Miner. Metall. Mater., 27(2020), No. 12, pp. 1650-1656. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12613-020-2130-0

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Research Article

Electrochemical deposition of Nd and Nd–Fe alloy from Cu₆Nd alloy in a NaCl–KCl–NdCl₃ melt

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Corresponding author:
Qian Xu E-mail: qianxu@shu.edu.cn
Received: 25 April 2020; Revised: 26 June 2020; Accepted: 28 June 2020; Available online: 30 June 2020

Abstract

Abstract

Electrorefining effectively separates metals from their corresponding alloys. To obtain Nd from Cu₆Nd alloy, cyclic voltammetry and square wave voltammetry were used to investigate the reduction behavior of Nd³⁺ and the anode dissolution behavior of Cu₆Nd in the NaCl–KCl–0.5mol%NdCl₃ melt at 1023 K. According to the analysis of the electrochemical behavior, the cell voltage was determined to be between 0.3 and 1.2 V for separating Nd from Cu₆Nd. After electrolysis at 0.6 V for 4 h, the Nd was found at the surface of the Mo cathode without any Cu. For the Fe cathode, a deposition with an atom ratio of Nd : Fe = 1:1 was formed on the surface. However, the low current density of separation remains a great experimental challenge that must be solved.
- Cu₆Nd alloy;
- molten salt;
- electrochemical separation;
- NaCl–KCl–NdCl₃

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