The performance change of aluminum electrolysis in standard cryolite electrolyte with cathodic current density

Abstract

A series of experiments were performed to verify the effect of current density in current efficiency of aluminum electrolysis in molten salts. To avoid interference of other parameters, a special designed laboratory cell were used. An increase in current efficiency was observed and the rate of aluminum loss agrees with previous studies and the hypothesis that the main process in which aluminum is lost called back reaction is controlled by diffusion in the boundary layer at the cathode/electrolyte interface.