Study on formation and properties of Al–Li–Sm alloy containing whiskers in molten salts

Abstract

The electrochemical behaviors of samarium ions on a liquid aluminum electrode in LiCl–KCl melts at 973 K were investigated by cyclic voltammetry, square wave voltammetry and a cathodic polarization test. The results show that only one kind of Al–Sm intermetallic compound can be formed under our experimental conditions. The Al–Li–Sm alloy containing whiskers was obtained by galvanostatic electrolysis in LiCl–KCl melts after the addition of 10 wt% SmCl₃ on a liquid aluminum electrode at 973 K. The alloy containing whiskers was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS). Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) was used to examine the percentage composition of each element. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) with electron diffraction was employed to characterize the crystal structure of the needle-like precipitates. The mechanical properties of the micro hardness and Young’s modulus were characterized by the Leitz micro hardness tester and the tool for Young’s modulus, respectively.