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

Experimental studies were performed to provide measurement and analysis of zirconium (Zr) electrochemistry in LiClsingle bond KCl eutectic salt at different temperatures and concentrations using cyclic voltammetry (CV). An additional experimental set with uranium chloride added into the system forming UCl sub(3)single bond ZrCl sub(4)single bond LiClsingle bond KCl was performed to explore the general behavior of these two species together. Results of CV experiments with ZrCl sub(4) show complicated cathodic and anodic peaks, which were identified along with the Zr reactions. The CV results reveal that diffusion coefficients (D) of ZrCl sub(4) and ZrCl sub(2) as the function of temperature can be expressed as D sub(Zr(IV)) = 0.00046exp(-3716/T) and D sub(Zr(II)) = 0.027exp(-5617/T), respectively. The standard rate constants and apparent standard potentials of ZrCl sub(4) at different temperatures were calculated. Furthermore, the results from the mixture of UCl sub(3) and ZrCl sub(4) indicate that high concentrations of UCl sub(3) hide the features of the smaller concentration of ZrCl sub(4) while Zr peaks become prominent as the concentration of ZrCl sub(4) increases.