Electrochemical behavior of Dy(III) on bismuth film electrode in eutectic LiCl-KCl melts

Abstract

An electrochemical study of dysprosium (III) on Bi film electrode was carried out in eutectic LiCl-KCl melts by transient and steady state electrochemical techniques. The results of transient electrochemical techniques showed that the reduction of Dy (III) appears at a more positive value than the one detected on W electrode owing to the formation of Bi-Dy intermetallic compounds through electrochemical deposition of Dy on bismuth film electrode. The thermodynamic properties of the formation for Dy-Bi intermetallics were estimated by a steady state electrochemical method in a temperature range of 713–803 K. Furthermore, the electrochemical preparation of Bi-Dy alloys was conducted by galvanostatic electrolysis at different current intensities. The Bi-Dy alloys, characterized by scanning electron microscopy equipped with energy dispersive spectrometry and X-ray diffraction, are comprised of DyBi3/5 and DyBi phases.