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Phase structure and electrochemical performances of Co-free La–Mg–Ni-based alloys with Nd/Sm partial substitution for La

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Abstract

In this paper, the Co-free hydrogen storage alloys with the nominal compositions of La0.75R0.05Mg0.20Ni3.40Al0.10 (R = La, Nd and Sm) were prepared by induction melting, and then the phase structure and electrochemical properties of these alloys were comparatively investigated. It is found that the alloys mainly consist of (La, Mg)2Ni7 phase, LaNi5 phase and (La, Mg)5Ni19 phase. Refinement results further show that Nd substitution for La remarkably promotes the formation of LaNi5 phase, while Sm is beneficial for the formation of (La, Mg)5Ni19 phase. At discharge current density of 1,875 mA·g−1, the high-rate dischargeability (HRD) of alloy electrodes increases by 13.9 % and 6.5 % with La substituted by Nd and Sm, respectively. The electrochemical kinetic measurements reveal that the exchange current density (I 0), charge transfer resistance (R) and hydrogen diffusion coefficient (D) for the alloy electrode are all facilitated with Nd and Sm partial substitution for La. Subsequently, a linear correlation between the HRD 1875 and the corresponding I 0/D is found.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51171165 and 21303157), the Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province (Nos. B2012203027, B2012203104, and B2014203114), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation Project (No. 2013M541201), and the Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (No. 20131333120008).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China

    Zhi-Ping Liu, Ming-Zhen Ma & Shu-Min Han

  2. College of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China

    Shu-Qin Yang, Yuan Li, Jing-Jing Liu & Shu-Min Han

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  1. Zhi-Ping Liu
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  2. Shu-Qin Yang
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Correspondence to Shu-Min Han.

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Liu, ZP., Yang, SQ., Li, Y. et al. Phase structure and electrochemical performances of Co-free La–Mg–Ni-based alloys with Nd/Sm partial substitution for La. Rare Met. 33, 674–680 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12598-014-0401-5

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