Martínez Carola, Valverde Bárbara, Del Valle-Rodríguez Aurora, Bustos-De La Fuente Brennie, Machado Izabel Fernanda, Briones Francisco
Departamento de Ingeniería en Obras Civiles, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco 4811230, Chile.
Escuela de Ingeniería Mecánica, Facultad de Ingeniería, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Quilpué 2430120, Chile.
Materials (Basel). 2025 May 23;18(11):2438. doi: 10.3390/ma18112438.
This study evaluates the wear and corrosion resistance of the Cu-50Ni-5Al alloy reinforced with CeO nanoparticles for potential use as anodes in molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs). Cu-50Ni-5Al alloys were synthesized, with and without the incorporation of 1% CeO nanoparticles, by the mechanical alloying method and spark plasma sintering (SPS). The samples were evaluated using a single scratch test with a cone-spherical diamond indenter under progressive normal loading conditions. A non-contact 3D surface profiler characterized the scratched surfaces to support the analysis. Progressive loading tests indicated a reduction of up to 50% in COF with 1% NPs, with specific values drop-ping from 0.48 in the unreinforced alloy to 0.25 in the CeO-doped composite at 15 N of applied load. Furthermore, the introduction of CeO decreased scratch depths by 25%, indicating enhanced wear resistance. The electrochemical behavior of the samples was evaluated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in a molten carbonate medium under a H/N atmosphere at 550 °C for 120 h. Subsequently, the corrosion products were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results demonstrated that the CeO-reinforced alloy exhibits superior electro-chemical stability in molten carbonate environments (LiCO-KCO) under an H/N atmosphere at 550 °C for 120 h. A marked reduction in polarization resistance and a pronounced re-passivation effect were observed, suggesting enhanced anodic protection. This effect is attributed to the formation of aluminum and copper oxides in both compositions, together with the appearance of NiO as the predominant phase in the materials reinforced with nanoparticles in a hydrogen-reducing atmosphere. The addition of CeO nanoparticles significantly improves wear resistance and corrosion performance. Recognizing this effect is vital for creating strategies to enhance the material's durability in challenging environments like MCFC.
本研究评估了添加CeO纳米颗粒的Cu-50Ni-5Al合金的耐磨和耐腐蚀性能,该合金有潜力用作熔融碳酸盐燃料电池(MCFC)的阳极。通过机械合金化方法和放电等离子烧结(SPS)合成了含和不含1%CeO纳米颗粒的Cu-50Ni-5Al合金。在逐渐增加法向载荷的条件下,使用锥形球形金刚石压头进行单划痕试验对样品进行评估。采用非接触式三维表面轮廓仪对划痕表面进行表征以辅助分析。逐渐加载试验表明,添加1%纳米颗粒后,摩擦系数降低了50%,在15N的外加负载下,具体数值从未增强合金的0.48降至CeO掺杂复合材料的0.25。此外,CeO的引入使划痕深度降低了25%,表明耐磨性增强。在550℃的H₂/N₂气氛下,于熔融碳酸盐介质中通过电化学阻抗谱(EIS)对样品的电化学行为进行了120小时的评估。随后,使用X射线衍射(XRD)、扫描电子显微镜结合能谱分析(SEM-EDS)和X射线光电子能谱(XPS)对腐蚀产物进行了表征。结果表明,在550℃的H₂/N₂气氛下于熔融碳酸盐环境(Li₂CO₃-K₂CO₃)中暴露120小时后,CeO增强合金表现出优异的电化学稳定性。观察到极化电阻显著降低且有明显的再钝化效应,表明阳极保护增强。这种效应归因于两种成分中均形成了铝和铜的氧化物,以及在氢还原气氛中,纳米颗粒增强材料中以NiO作为主要相出现。添加CeO纳米颗粒显著提高了耐磨性和耐腐蚀性能。认识到这种效应对于制定提高材料在MCFC等具有挑战性环境中的耐久性策略至关重要。