Carbon black corrosion

Aromaticity is the most important property of a carbon black feedstock. It is generally measured by the Bureau of Mines Correlation Index (BMCI) and is an indication of the carbon-to-hydrogen ratio. The sulfur content is limited to reduce corrosion, loss of yield, and sulfur in the product. It may be limited in certain locations for environmental reasons. The boiling range must be low enough so that it will be completely volatilized under furnace time—temperature conditions. Alkane insolubles or asphaltenes must be kept below critical levels in order to maintain product quaUty. Excessive asphaltene content results in a loss of reinforcement and poor treadwear in tire appHcations. 

The surface structure has a strong influence on the corrosion rate of carbon in both acid and alkaline electrolytes. Studies by Kinoshita [33] clearly showed that the specific corrosion rate mAcm"2 of carbon black in 96 wt% H3P04 at 160 °C was affected by heat treatment. A similar trend in the corrosion rate in alkaline electrolyte was observed by Ross [30c], as shown in Fig. 4. It is evident that the corrosion rates of the nongraphitized carbons are higher than those of the corresponding graphitized carbons. Their study further indicated that some types of carbon blacks (e.g., semi... 

The most common overcoats, however, are sputtered carbons. Their role in disk corrosion has been described in contradicting ways. Whereas Garrison [141] clearly observed that carbon, like Rh, can enhance galvanic corrosion, Smallen et al. [131] believe that carbon decreases corrosion by preventing lateral growth of corrosion products. Results of similar tests are sometimes contradictory Nagao et al. [145] have shown an improvement of the corrosion resistance of carbon-coated CoCr alloys on T/H test (with either SOz gas or NaCl mist), whereas Black [146] finds that pyrolitic carbon over a CoCrMo alloy results in elevated corrosion rates. 

Charcoals and various carbon blacks show great variability of their structure and properties as a function of the carbonaceous starting material and the preparation conditions [3, 11]. The graphitization of carbon, which is required to achieve a high corrosion resistance, lead to materials of more homogeneous structures and properties, allowing a good reproducibility of reactions. 

The carbon black generated by a fire from a rubber source increases the smoke density other products are highly toxic and often corrosive. The halogens, phosphates, borates, and their acids evolved during a fire corrode metals and electrical and electronic equipment. Hence many of the fire retardants described below cannot be used in situations where the toxic gases evolved will create their own hazards. In these cases inorganic hydroxides are used, at filler-type addition levels. Aluminium hydroxide and magnesium hydroxide are used as non-toxic fire retardant systems. 

Alternative support materials are being investigated to replace carbon black as support in order to provide higher corrosion resistance and surface area. These supports can be classified into (i) carbon nanotubes and fibers (ii) mesoporous carbon and (iii) multi-layer graphene and they are presented in detail in the following section. 

Ball et al. investigated the effect of carbon surface area on carbon corrosion at 1.2 V for 24 h and found that, for commercial carbon blacks, cumulative carbon corrosion correlated with carbon BET (Brunauer Emmett Teller) area, although when analyzed as specific carbon corrosion (weight of carbon corroded per unit of carbon area), some variation was observed. The effect of Ft on carbon corrosion has also been studied and conflicting results have been reported. Roen, Paik, and Jarvi found that Ft did increase carbon corrosion... 

Comparison of BET surface area and cumulative carbon weight loss following corrosion at 1.2 V versus RHE, 1 M H2SO4, 80°C, 24 h for a range of carbon blacks. (Reprinted from S. C. Ball et al.. Journal of Power Sources, 171,18. Copyright 2007 with permission of Elsevier.)... 

One interesting approach that has been suggested is to improve the corrosion resistance of carbon blacks by coating them with WC.i Depositing Pt onto WC-treated carbon has been shown to improve cycle degradation resistance to 1.8 V. 

One of the common ways in which fuel cell components experience degradation is through corrosion. Carbon particles in the CL are susceptible to electrochemical (voltage) corrosion and contain Pt particles that catalyze oxidation reactions. The carbon fibers in CFPs and CCs and the carbon black in MPLs are not as susceptible to these issues because they are not part of the electrochemical reactions and do not contain Pt particles. However, they can still go through chemical surface (hydrogen peroxide) oxidation by water or even by loss of carbon due to oxidation to carbon monoxide or carbon dioxide [256,257]. 

Important characteristics determining the quality of a feedstock are the C/H ratio as determined by elemental analysis and the BMC Index [4.7] (Bureau of Mines Correlation Index), which is calculated from the density and the mid-boiling point resp. the viscosity. Both values give some information on the aromaticity and therefore the expected yield. Further characteristics are viscosity, pourpoint, alkaline content (due to its influence on the carbon black structure), and sulfur content, which should be low because of environmental and corrosion considerations. 

Heckman and Harling57 examined the gas-phase oxidation of carbon black micro-structures and showed that oxidative attack of carbon crystallites was concentrated on the small crystallites, at the edges of layer planes and at lattice defects. Partial graphitization of a carbon black, so that only the outermost surface layers are well-ordered, causes oxidative corrosion within the core of the carbon particle, leaving an outer shell . Consequently, similar behavior can be expected for ungraphitized and partially graphitized carbons in electrochemical environments. 

Alkaline fuel cells have been used extensively on early spacecraft imtil they were superseded by more reliable solar cells. The high cost of the space cells and the use of corrosive compoxmds requiring special care in handling have been held against AFCs. Current AFC development employs multi-component electrodes using Ni for structural stability and as catalyst, carbon black as electron conductor and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) pore-forming... 

Designing alloy electrocatalysts by the so-called ad-atom method, and by alloy sputtering for oxidation of CH3OH and CO, and for CO tolerance in H2 oxidation, respectively, as well as for O2 reduction are discussed. Many years of experience are summarized and collaborations with other groups are highlighted. The particle size effect in electrocatalysis by small particle electrodes, and the effect of corrosion of carbon-black supported nanoparticles on the electrocatalytic activity are also discussed. All these factors, as well as catalyst lifetimes, are very important in fuel cell performance and in the final cost estimates for the practical fuel cell applications. 

Figure 13 TEM photographs of Pt-Ni-Co supported on carbon black before (A) and after (C) corrosion (in 100% H3PO4 at 240 °C and 0.9 V vs. RHE for 48hrs), and distributions of alloy components from the center to the periphery on their representative particles, shown in (B) and (D).

Solvents produce different effects than do corrosive chemicals. Both silica and carbon black filled natural rubbers were more resistant to solvents than unfilled rubber. Also, the cure time was important, indicating that the bound rubber plays a role in the reduction of a solvent sorption. The diffusion coefficient of solvents into rubbers decreases with longer cure times and higher fillers loadings. Polychloroprene rubber swollen with solvent has a lower compression set when it is filled with carbon black. 

The carbon corrosion issues are faced by the study of different carbonaceous supports, such as carbon black or carbon nanostructures. Recent results evidence the superiority of graphitized carbon with respect to amorphous carbon black in terms of corrosion resistance, and the promising characteristics of carbon nanocages when Pt sintering effects are considered [62]. 

Wang J, Yin G, Shao Y, Zhang S, Wang Z, Gao Y (2007) Effect of carbon black support corrosion on the durability of Pt/C catalyst. J Power Sources 171 331-339 Maass S, Finsterwalder F, Frank G, Hartmann R, Merten C (2008) Carbon support oxidation in PEM fuel cell cathodes. J Power Sources 176 444-4.51... 

Typical transfer molding compositions for encapsulation of electronic devices are mixtures of an epoxy novolac resin, a phenolic resin hardener, a catalyst, large amounts of inorganic filler (e.g., Si02) flame-retardant ingredients, internal lubricants, carbon black, and sometimes other additives such as getters to trap ionic impurities (34,35), corrosion-protection materials, and stress-relief ingredients. 

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