Effects of temperature, concentration, and uranium chloride mixture on zirconium electrochemical studies in LiClKCl eutectic salt

Experimental studies were performed to provide measurement and analysis of zirconium (Zr) electrochemistry in LiClKCl eutectic salt at different temperatures and concentrations using cyclic voltammetry (CV). An additional experimental set with uranium chloride added into the system forming UCl3ZrCl4LiClKCl was performed to explore the general behavior of these two species together. Results of CV experiments with ZrCl4 show complicated cathodic and anodic peaks, which were identified along with the Zr reactions. The CV results reveal that diffusion coefficients (D) of ZrCl4 and ZrCl2 as the function of temperature can be expressed as DZr(IV) = 0.00046exp(−3716/T) and DZr(II) = 0.027exp(−5617/T), respectively. The standard rate constants and apparent standard potentials of ZrCl4 at different temperatures were calculated. Furthermore, the results from the mixture of UCl3 and ZrCl4 indicate that high concentrations of UCl3 hide the features of the smaller concentration of ZrCl4 while Zr peaks become prominent as the concentration of ZrCl4 increases.