Synergistic Enhancement of Zinc Electrowinning Performance by Ti2N Interlayer and CeMnOx Powder Modification

TL;DR

Researchers developed a new composite anode for zinc electrowinning that improves performance and durability compared to traditional anodes.

Contribution

A novel Ti2N interlayer and CeMnOx modification is introduced to enhance anode performance in zinc electrowinning.

Findings

The composite anode showed reduced overpotential and faster oxygen evolution kinetics.

The anode's corrosion resistance was significantly improved, lasting 53 hours under high current.

The Ti2N interlayer and CeMnOx modification effectively inhibited anode degradation.

Abstract

In zinc electrowinning, industrial Pb-Ag anodes have inherent limitations, including high oxygen evolution overpotential and rapid corrosion. This study constructs Ti-Ti2N-PbO2-CeMnOx composite anodes to overcome these shortcoming, Electrochemical characterization revealed enhanced performance with a reduced overpotential (725 mV 50 mA cm−2) and lower Tafel slope (102.92 mV dec−1) in the standard zinc electrowinning electrolyte, indicating faster oxygen evolution kinetics compared to commercial benchmarks. Analysis of the XPS test revealed an increase in the content of Mn3+, which helps enhance the OER catalytic activity of the electrode. The Ti/Ti2N/α/β-PbO2-CeMnOx (abbreviation: CMO) composite anode exhibited superior corrosion resistance with an extended service life of 53 h under accelerated polarization at 2 A cm−2. This durability enhancement is attributed to the combined effects of the Ti2N interlayer and CMO incorporation, which effectively mitigate anode degradation through passivation inhibition. The developed fabrication strategy enables the production of dimensionally stable anodes (DSAs) with balanced electrocatalytic activity and operational stability, showing promising potential for industrial zinc electrowinning applications.

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