On the long-term oxidation behaviour of homogeneous Ni–Fe–Cu alloys for CO2-free aluminium electrowinning applications at 800 °C

Abstract The oxidation behaviour of homogeneous Ni ₂₉ 29 Fe ₅₆ 56 Cu ₁₅ 15 wt. %, Ni ₄₂ 42 Fe ₃₈ 38 Cu ₂₀ 20 wt. % and Ni ₆₀ 60 Fe ₃₀ 30 Cu ₁₀ 10 wt. % is investigated under 1 atm flux of high-purity O ₂ 2 gas—using thermogravimetry—with respect to application as oxygen-evolving anodes for aluminium electrolysis. Stable cubic oxidation behaviour was observed in Ni ₄₂ 42 Fe ₃₈ 38 Cu ₂₀ 20 wt. % and Ni ₆₀ 60 Fe ₃₀ 30 Cu ₁₀ 10 wt. % after 30 h and 264 h, respectively, with the former showing particular promise for electrowinning applications due to a tendency to form a well-adhered scale consisting of approximately 70% NiFe ₂ 2 O ₄ 4 by thickness, as measured from EDX line scans. NiO dominated the scale of Ni ₆₀ 60 Fe ₃₀ 30 Cu ₁₀ 10 wt. % up to 272 h, showing worse scale adhesion and prominent intergranular oxidation of iron. Partially blistered regions of the scale locally increased NiO/CuO formation in Ni ₄₂ 42 Fe ₃₈ 38 Cu ₂₀ 20 wt. %, evolved to become (Cu/Ni, Fe) O spinel oxides over time.