Effect of Ce content on performance of AZ31 magnesium alloy anode in air battery

Abstract

In this work, five AZ31-xCe magnesium alloy anode materials were prepared, and their microstructure, electrochemical properties and discharge properties were studied to reveal the effect of Ce content on the casting anode of magnesium air battery. The introduction of the Ce element can refine the grain and purify the α-Mg matrix. AZ31–1Ce magnesium alloy has the best corrosion resistance, and the activity of magnesium alloy enhances with the increase of Ce content. Compared with AZ31 magnesium alloy, AZ31-xCe magnesium alloy has higher discharge activity, which is due to the introduction of Ce element to purify the magnesium alloy, and the Al4Ce phase can promote the uniform dissolution of Mg matrix. When the discharge current density is 10 mA cm−2 the AZ31–4Ce anode shows the highest energy density of 1552.370 mWh g−1 and the best specific capacity of 1282.051 mAh g−1 which are 46.05% and 29.901% higher than the AZ31 anode. Compared with AZ31 magnesium alloy, the anode of AZ31–4Ce magnesium alloy has a smoother discharge surface morphology, which is beneficial to the desquamation of the discharge products.