Electrochemical removal of oxygen for processing glass-forming alloys

We present the application of a novel electrochemical method to overcome the negative effects associated with oxygen contamination in Zr-based glass-forming alloys. The general principle is to remove oxygen from the material by direct electrochemical reduction in a molten salt electrolyte. An oxygen-containing cathode is submerged in molten CaCl2 or a eutectic mixture with other salts. When a current is applied, oxygen is ionised at the cathode, dissolved in the molten salt and discharged as a gas at the anode. We investigate thermodynamic and kinetic limitations to the reduction in oxygen content and the resulting improvement in glass-forming ability that can be achieved when this method is applied to glass-forming alloys.