Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Director-general of Agency of Industrial Science and Technology

Hideki Iba

Chikatoshi Maeda

Etsuo Akiba

Yasuhide Kurimoto

Takeshi Tojigamori

Yasuyuki Suzuki

Tadashi Takeuchi

A main object of the present disclosure is to provide a cathode active material with excellent capacity properties. In order to achieve the object, the present disclosure provides a cathode active material to be used in a fluoride ion battery wherein the cathode active material mainly contains a metal element M and a metal element M'; the metal element M is at least one kind of Cu, Fe and Mn; and the metal element M&#x2032; is at least one kind of Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho and Yb.

Cathode active material and fluoride ion battery

To provide a hydrogen absorbing alloy having a BCC (body-centered cubic structure) as a crystal structure, and particularly a hydrogen-absorbing alloy for a nickel-hydride cell having excellent discharge capacity and durability (cycle characteristics), said hydrogen-absorbing alloy having a composition expressed by the general formula Ti(100&minus;a&minus;b&minus;c&minus;d)CraVbNicXd, where X is at least one member selected from the group consisting of Y (yttrium), lanthanoids, Pd and Pt, and each of a, b, c and d is represented, in terms of at %, by the relations 8&lE;a&lE;50, 30<b&lE;60, 5&lE;c&lE;15, 2&lE;d&lE;10 and 40&lE;a&plus;b&plus;c&plus;d&lE;90, wherein the crystal structure of a principal phase is a body-centered cubic structure, and further, the alloy contains at least one of Mo and W in place of V and at least one member selected from the group consisting of Y (yttrium), lanthanoids, Pd and Pt, and its crystal structure is converted to the body-centered cubic structure by heat-treatment.

Hydrogen-absorbing alloy and hydrogen-absorbing alloy electrode

The present invention relates to a surface treatment for hydrogen-absorbing alloy. More particularly, the present invention relates to a surface treatment for hydrogen-absorbing alloy by which the poisoning resistance of a surface of alloy powder with respect to oxide film, water or absorbing gas can be enhanced so that activation treatment can be easily conducted on alloy powder. In the method, the poisoning resistance is enhanced by forming a protective film, which contains at least one of sulfide and fluoride, on the surface of hydrogen-absorbing alloy powder in an atmosphere containing SF,gas when hydrogen-absorbing alloy is crushed or hydrogen-absorbing alloy is in a state of powder or when hydrogen-absorbing alloy is made into powder by rapidly cooling and solidifying. Further, the above method includes: a process in which hydrogen-absorbing alloy is accommodated in a container and crushing of hydrogenation is conducted on the alloy in an atmosphere of hydrogen; a process of dehydrogenation in which gases are withdrawn from the container; and a process in which heat treatment is conducted in the container, wherein the atmosphere in the container contains SF,gas.

Hydrogen absorbing alloy powder and method for producing hydrogen absorbing alloy powder

A BCC type hydrogen-absorbing alloy, which uses a ferroalloy, is advantageous from the aspect of the production cost and exhibits excellent hydrogen absorption and desorption characteristics due to a fine structure constituted by spinodal decomposition even when the iron component is increased. The hydrogen-absorbing alloy is expressed by the general formula A,Va,B,, where A is at least one of Ti and Zr, Va is at least one member of the Group Va elements of the Periodic Table consisting of V, Nb and Ta, and B contains at least Fe and is at least one member selected from the group consisting of Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Al, Mo and W, each of x, y and z satisfies the relation, in terms of of the atomic number ratio, 0&lE;x&lE;70, 0&lE;y&lE;50, x&plus;y&plus;z&equals;100, and x/z&equals;0.25 to 2.0, the phase of the body-centered cubic structure is at least 50% in terms of the phase fraction and its lattice constant is at least 0.2950 nm but not greater than 0.3100 nm.

Hydrogen-absorbing alloy

Hydrogen-absorbing alloy and process for preparing the same

This invention relates to a hydrogen-absorbing alloy, and particularly provides a hydrogen-absorbing alloy having a body-centered cubic structure which has a periodical structure formed by spinodal decomposition, has a large hydrogen storage amount, has excellent hydrogen desorption characteristics and can mitigate activation conditions, the alloy comprises at least two elements of alloy components, wherein the relational curve between chemical free energy of solid solutions and an alloy composition has a shape describing an upwardly convexed curve, or said alloy comprises two solid solutions having a regular periodical structure formed by spinodal decomposition within a region satisfying the relation d.sup.2 G/dX.sub.B.sup.2 &lt;0 (where G is chemical free energy and X.sub.B is a solute alloy concentration) as the principal phase.

A magnesium alloy includes 0.1 to 6.0% by weight of Al, 0.25 to 6.0% by weight of Zn, 0.1 to 4.0% by weight of rare earth element (hereinafter referred to as 'R.E.'), and balance of Mg and inevitable impurities. Preferably, it includes 1.0 to 3.0% by weight of Al ('a'), 0.25 to 3.0% by weight of Zn ('b') and 0.5 to 4.0% by weight of R.E.: wherein when 'b' is in a range, 0.25.ltoreq.'b'.ltoreq.1.0, 'a' and 'c' satisfy a relationship, 'c'.ltoreq.'a'+1.0; and when 'b' is in a range, 1.0.ltoreq.'b'.ltoreq.3.0, 'a,' 'b' and 'c' satisfy a relationship, 'c'.ltoreq.'a'+'b'.ltoreq.(1/2)'c'+4.0; in order to further improve creep properties at elevated temperatures while maintaining enhanced tensile strength at room temperature and up to 100.degree. C. at least.

Heat resistant magnesium alloy

A magnesium alloy includes 0.1 to 6.0% by weight of Al, 1.0 to 6.0% by weight of Zn, 0.1 to 3.0% by weight of rare earth element (hereinafter referred to as 'R.E.'), and balance of Mg and inevitable impurities. By thusly adding Al and Zn, the castability, especially the die-castability, is improved. At the same time, the room temperature strength can be improved because the Mg-Al-Zn crystals having a reduced brittleness are dispersed uniformly in the crystal grains. Further, by adding R.E. as aforementioned, the high temperature strength is improved because the Mg-Al-Zn-R.E. crystals having a higher melting point and being less likely to melt are present in the crystal grain boundaries between the Mg-Al-Zn crystals. This magnesium alloy is excellent in castability, can be die-cast, has a higher tensile strength at room temperature, and is satisfactory in high temperature properties and creep properties. Moreover, when the magnesium alloy includes R.E. in a reduced amount of 0.1 to 2.0% by weight, and further includes 0.1 to 2.0% by weight of Zr and 0.1 to 3.0% by weight of Si, it becomes a magnesium alloy, which is further excellent in the castability, which has a higher tensile strength at room temperature, which is further superb in the high temperature properties and the creep properties, and at the same time whose corrosion resistance is upgraded.

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Hideki Iba