Kinetics of Thermal Synthesis of Cerium Sulfides

Authors

Kevin B. Gibbard, University of Florida
Kerry N. Allahar, University of Florida
David Kolman, Los Alamos National Laboratory
Darryl P. Butt, Boise State UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-1-2008

Abstract

One of the most promising applications for cerium sulfide is as a refractory for molten metal processing, particularly for reactive actinides. Separate processes were used to synthesize cerium monosulfide, cerium sesquisulfide (Ce₂S₃) and cerium hydride (CeH₂). High purity Ce₂S₃ was produced by reacting ceria (CeO₂) and hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) in an induction furnace using a carbon catalyst at temperatures above 2000 °C. CeH₂ was synthesized from cerium metal and hydrogen gas at 100 °C. Ce₂S₃ and CeH₂ were subsequently reacted together in an induction furnace at temperatures above 1700 °C to produce CeS. X-ray diffraction was used to analyze synthesized samples and the kinetics of the CeS synthesis reaction was modeled using a diffusion-limited reaction model. The activation energy for the process was estimated to be 190 kJ/mol.

Publication Information

Gibbard, Kevin B.; Allahar, Kerry N.; Kolman, David; and Butt, Darryl P.. (2008). "Kinetics of Thermal Synthesis of Cerium Sulfides". Journal of Nuclear Materials, 378(3), 291-298. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2008.05.013