[en] Molten salts are good heat conductors. They are identified for future applications such as the implementation of a GEN IV nuclear reactor, heat transportation between 650 deg. and 850 deg. C for the hydrogen generation purpose, and electrolysis of aluminum between 850 deg. and 950 deg. C. Generally speaking, these salts are aggressive for materials that maintain them such as transportation, mixing and chemical composition. That is why we want to study and implement induction devices to replace the functions of these materials by electromagnetic forces. This will allow a dual benefit: improving the longevity and reduce secondary wastes. In the present work, we use a specific electromagnetic device for accelerating mass transfers through liquid / liquid interface. To reduce barriers to transfer, the interface is shacked at a frequency near of one of its natural frequencies. To achieve this, we use an adapted dual-frequency electromagnetic field. A pyrometallurgy pre-industrial graded facility, based on cold crucible technique, is used to carry out numerous experiments on the extraction of actinides and other elements from a fluorinated salt into a liquid metal phase containing a reducing agent such as magnesium, aluminium or lithium. At time t = 0, the metallic alloy is poured under the molten salt. Metallic samples are taken from the bulk at known time intervals. Later, the samples are analysed using optical ICP. Transfer rate and kinetics are deduced from obtained experimental data. Compare to other treatment, the present one is found to lead faster to a higher rate of transfer. (authors)

[en] Measurement of the thermophysical properties of liquid metals is challenging because of their high chemical activity and high temperatures. The electromagnetic levitation allows one to hold the electrically conductive liquid sample containerless in an inert atmosphere in thermal equilibrium while measurements on the sample can be taken in a non-contact way followed by extraction of some thermophysical properties. Yet, the electromagnetic forces within the skin layer inside the sample cause convective flow of the liquid thus disabling the data extraction. A static magnetic field imposed over a sample is known to damp the convective flow. With these ideas, an experimental set-up with a DC magnetic field directed perpendicular to the gravity vector was constructed and first experiments were performed with liquid Ni and some other materials. In most of the experiments the instability of the levitated sample during a slow variation of the DC magnetic field was observed which is reported in the present article. (paper)

[en] Graphical abstract: Structure of directionally solidified Sn–10 wt.%Pb alloy at solidification velocity of 0.5 μm/s. (a) without magnetic field; (b) with 0.4 T transverse field. Highlights: •Directional solidification of Sn–10 wt.%Pb alloy under magnetic field. •Thermoelectromagnetic velocity order of magnitude is estimated. •At low pulling velocities structure change due to magnetic field is more profound. •Significant segregation appears perpendicular to field direction in transverse field. -- Abstract: In this experimental work Sn–10 wt.%Pb alloy is directionally solidified in Bridgman setup at various growth velocities (from 0.5 μm/s to 20 μm/s) under transverse 0.4 T magnetic field. Temperature gradient of 8 K/mm is maintained perpendicular to the solidification direction during experiments. Liquid phase convection and its influence on the structure and segregation of an alloy, caused by magnetic field and thermoelectric current interaction (thermoelectromagnetic convection or TEMC) is studied experimentally and estimated theoretically in this work. Detailed velocity order of magnitude estimation is carried out. Besides optical microscopy, component distribution along the diameter of the sample is quantitatively measured by scanning electron microscopy. Results show that significant influence on the macrosegregation and dendrite spacing of a metallic alloy is achieved if sample is solidified with applied transverse magnetic field at low solidification velocity