The influence of thermal degradation on the electrodeposition of aluminium from an air- and water-stable ionic liquid.

Aluminium electrodeposition is demonstrated from a thermally degraded ionic liquid solution. NMR and voltammetric analyses established that Al(3+) reduction was remarkably similar to that in non-degraded IL solutions suggesting that the electroactive metal-containing species was unaffected by heat treatment. Electron microscopy revealed a significant grain refinement of the deposited metal.