Materials for thermionic energy converters

This paper deals with the design and construction of a combustion heated Thermionic Energy Converter (TEC). Main components of this TEC are: 1. A ''Hot Shell'' protecting the TEC from the combustion environment 2. A ''Ceramic Seal'' electrically insulating the emitter from the collector 3. A ''Cermet Emitter'' electrode. The ''Hot Shell'' consists of a multy-layer composite of SiC-TiN-W, which on the in-side is coated with the ''Cermet Emitter''. The ''Ceramic Seal'' consists of a metal-ceramic joint of alumina, metallized with Mo 2% Ti and copper brazed to a Fe28Ni23Co alloy ballows. The ''Cermet Emitter'' consists of a directionally solidified Al2O3-W eutectic coating