Co-electrodeposition of U and Mo from a LiCl-KCl melt

By Lee, Na-Ri; Kang, Byungman; Choi, Suhee; Bae, Sang-Eun; Park, Tae-Hong; Kim, Jong-Yun; Kim, Jongwon
Published in Journal of Nuclear Materials 2018

Abstract

Co-electrodeposition of uranium and molybdenum from a LiCl-KCl melt was investigated using cyclic voltammetry (CV), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrochemical study showed that the electrodeposition of Mo occurred from a molten LiCl-KCl eutectic at potentials more negative than ?0.3 V vs. Ag|Ag+. Electrodeposition at a low overpotential range (between ?0.3 V and ?0.35 V) resulted in flat, thin Mo films, whereas greater overpotentials led to the growth of 3D films. Conditions for simultaneous electrodeposition of U and Mo were then optimized by varying the concentrations of UCl3 and MoCl3 and the electrodeposition method applied. At a constant potential of ?1.58 V, a melt containing 1.3 wt% UCl3 and 1.5 wt% MoCl3 resulted in the co-electrodeposition of dendrites due to the high overpotential for Mo electrodeposition. However, diffusion-controlled electrodeposition using the same potential and concentration resulted in a uniform and flat U-Mo film. This co-electrodeposition of U-Mo films could be applied to the preparation of low-cost U-Mo nuclear fuel.

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