Structure of particles of very finely divided electrolytic iron

Abstract

X-ray structural analysis and electron microscopy have been employed to study the sizes and crystalline structures of particles of very fine iron powders produced in a two-layer bath using direct and pulsed currents and in a bath with an ultrasound-emitting cathode. The study has demonstrated that the superposition of an additional perturbance (an ultrasonic field or a pulsed current supply) on the electrolysis process restricts the growth of microcrystals and decrease their size variation compared with particles produced by electrolysis using a direct current. The character of curves of some structural characteristics of very fine iron powders plotted against the parameters of electrolysis in a two-layer bath with the use of a direct current, an ultrasound emitting cathode, and a pulsed current is evidence that iron particle formation in these variants of the electrolytic process occurs through different mechanisms.