There have been some studies related to the chemical and electrochemical behaviour of cerium in molten salts. The eutectic LiCl-KCl, the eutectic NaCl-KCl, the eutectic LiF-KF-NaF and room temperature AlCl3-1-methyl-3-ethylimidazolium chloride are used most for this kind of study, and some differences have been found in the stability and the electrochemical properties of cerium ions in these media.
Kim Pyong Hun, a section head at the General Assay Office, has studied the electrochemical reduction of CeO2 in eutectic CaCl2-NaCl melt by means of the cyclic voltammetry and the constant voltage electrolysis.
One cathodic current peak in the cyclic voltammogram was observed and a one-step electrochemical reduction mechanism of CeO2 appeared. For different hours of electrolysis at the temperature 800℃ and at the constant voltage 3.0V, the products of CeOCl and CeO2 were observed by XRD. This result confirms the electrochemical reduction sequence: CeO2→CeOCl.
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