Oxygen Transport Ceramic Membranes

In this quarter a systematic analysis on the decomposition behavior of the OTM membranes at air and nitrogen were initiated to understand the structural and stoichiometric changes associated with elevated temperatures. Evaluation of the flexural strengths using 4-point bend test was also started for the dual phase membranes. Initial results on the synthesis of dual phase composite materials have been obtained. The measurements have focused on the compatibility of mixed conductors with the pure ionic conductors yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and gadolinium doped ceria (GDC). The initial results obtained for three different mixed conductors suggest that (GDC) is the better choice. A new membrane permeation system has been designed and tested and sintering studies of biphasic systems are in progress