Deoxidation purification of La-Ce alloy by solid state external gettering

Deep removal of interstitial impurities such as oxygen from La-Ce alloy is challenging due to their strong affinity and high chemical reactivity with oxygen. The method of external getter was employed to investigate the deoxidation process and thus to explore the deoxidation mechanism.Quantification of relevant elements including Ca, Y, and O were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry(ICP-MS) and inert gas analysis (IGA). The analysis results show that oxygen concentration decreased from 550 ppm to 54 ppm and 55 ppm respectively in La-Ce alloy by Ca and Y as the external getters. The interaction between the getters and base metal, the chemical driving force and deoxidation mechanism were discussed in details.