DEVELOPMENT OF A ‘SEE-THROUGH’ ELECTROLYTIC CELL FOR MOLTEN-SALT ELECTROWINNING

One of the greatest challenges facing researchers in the area of molten-salt electrometallurgy is that conventional furnaces and electrolytic cells are essentially ‘black-box’ technology. To address this problem, we have designed and constructed an electrolytic cell based upon a fused quartz tube that allows in-situ observation of electrode processes at high temperature, coupled with sophisticated image capture equipment. The ‘see-through’ cell enables the observation of critical processes such as metal deposition at the cathode, gas evolution at the anode, bath circulation, and the interaction between cathode and anode products. This paper details the development and application of the ‘see-through’ cell facility in the study of metal production via high-temperature electrowinning. Our findings indicate that utilizing this innovative design allows for improved understanding and monitoring of electrolysis reactions, resulting in more accurate data regarding electrode processes during operation.