Abstract
This study reports the direct production of an aluminium-titanium alloy during aluminium electrolysis in fluoride-based melts. Experiments were conducted in a laboratory cell dedicated to current efficiency measurements. The temperature was varied from 960 to 980 °C at a cathodic current density (CCD) of 0.9 A/cm2 and a cryolite ratio (CR) of 2.2. The titanium content was up to 1.0 wt%. Titanium was added in the form of a TiO2 precursor. Bath samples were collected regularly and analyzed with ICP-MS to observe the decay of titanium during electrolysis. The current efficiency for electrodeposition of Al–Ti alloys was estimated to be at least around 90%. The surface of the solidified metal deposits was mostly flat, but some deposits were partially deformed.
Highlights
Titanium has good mechanical properties, including good corrosion resistance, a high strength to weight ratio, and stiffness
This agrees with reports which suggest that an enhancement of 1% in current efficiency was recorded upon decreasing the operating temperature by 5 ◦C [29]
The results suggest that there is an increase in the content of Ti in the metal upon increasing the initial concentration, regardless of the operating temperature, which is in good agreement with results from a previous study [19]
Summary
Titanium has good mechanical properties, including good corrosion resistance, a high strength to weight ratio, and stiffness. Melt mixing has several drawbacks, such as the high cost of pure titanium metal, the significant energy requirements, and the pos sibility of serious segregation [19] These drawbacks could be remedied through an in situ electrochemical reduction of titania in fluoride-based melts, which has long been a subject of research [20,21]. The potential difference between the deposition reactions for aluminium and titanium was estimated to be 0.3 V, which is very close to the difference between the standard decomposition potentials of alumina and titania (0.33 V) [5] Such results suggest the likelihood of forming an Al-Ti alloy on the cathode. Current efficiency (CE) is a representation of how efficiently the supplied electricity has been used to deposit aluminium It can be estimated by metal weight gain relating the actual aluminium produced to the aluminium that would theoretically be produced based on Faraday’s law. The effect of the presence of Ti on the cell performance with respect to Al, the current efficiency for the produced alloy, and the surface shape of the deposit are discussed
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