Galvanic oxidation of bimetallic Zn-Fe nanoparticles for oxygen scavenging

A Castro and I Carvalho and L Marques and PJ Ferreira and A Cavaleiro and S Carvalho and VS Calderon, APPLIED SURFACE SCIENCE, 537, 147896 (2021).

DOI: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2020.147896

Bimetallic nanoparticles (NP) have demonstrated outstanding multifunctional characteristics, which depend on their size, distribution and composition. In this study, we show the possibility of tailoring the oxidation behavior of Zn-Fe bimetallic nanoparticles produced by magnetron sputtering and gas agglomeration system. Zn and Fe metals were coupled to promote faster oxidation of Zn, stimulating a galvanic mechanism due to the dissimilar corrosion potential in the nanoparticles. The results revealed Zn dissolution occurring at high humidity environments for bimetallic Zn-Fe nanoparticles where no intermix exists between Zn and Fe; however, such dissolution is excluded for ZnFe alloys. The effect of the galvanic couple on the Zn dissolution was confirmed by molecular dynamic simulations. This bimetallic system can be exploited as moisture-activated oxygen scavenger materials due to the acceleration in the oxidation mechanism.

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