Design and Fabrication of Novel Mixed Ion-Electron Conducting Membranes for Oxygen Separation
Low cost oxygen separation is a key component of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy Vision 21 program with a goal of producing non-polluting energy using a wide variety of fuel sources. Today, for a gasification based energy system, the cost of the air separation unit represents 12 – 15% of the installed capital costs and requires a significant amount of power during operation resulting in lowered operational efficiencies. Consequently, there is a significant opportunity for lowered capital costs and improved operating efficiencies for new oxygen generation technologies that can replace existing cryogenic systems. One of the most promising new technologies under development by the DOE is advanced Ion-Electron Mixed Conductors (IEMC) for oxygen separation from air. Beginning in 1998, NETL initiated a three-phase research program with an industrial consortium led by Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (APCI) to develop IEMC technology with a goal to cut the cost of oxygen production by one third compared to existing technology. Currently, APCI is testing a 5 ton per day (TPD) oxygen generator with designs and construction in process for scaling up to 100 TPD. Despite the impressive progress that has been made in this technology development there are still ample opportunities to further improve the system performance, lower cost and improve efficiency as evidenced by the letter of support provided by APCI for this proposed project. One area that offers the potential for significant reductions in operation cost and for improving efficiency is improved oxygen permeation rates through the IEMC membrane. The primary ways to achieve that goal are through decreasing the membrane thickness, developing a new material with higher ionic conductivities than current state of the art materials, improving the surface kinetics of the electrode reactions and/or lowering the cost of manufacture for producing these complex membrane structures. In this project, HiFunda and Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) developed a new IEMC membrane material from the family of double perovskite materials with improved ionic conductivity and surface kinetics over state of the art materials in conjunction with improvements in the manufacturing process through advancements in plasma spray technology. In this Phase I SBIR project, we developed new mixed ion and electron conducting (IEMC) membrane materials from the family of double perovskite materials with improved ionic conductivity over state of the art materials in conjunction with improvements in the manufacturing process through advancements in plasma spray technology. The project team was able to successfully achieve two of the technical objectives, and partially accomplish the third. We identified new IEMC membrane materials from the family of double perovskite materials. We also conducted tests that demonstrated best-in-class oxygen ion conductivity of 0.045 S/cm at 800oC that exceeded our project goal of 0.03 S/cm, as well as surface exchange coefficient, kchem, and the bulk diffusion coefficient, Dchem, higher than state of the art materials. We also identified specific solution precursors and SPPS process parameters to deposit gas-tight thin dense double perovskite membrane (10-20 μm) on porous substrates. IEMC membrane based oxygen production technology represents a revolutionary approach to producing high-quality tonnage quantity oxygen. Highly efficient oxygen gas separation represents a key enabling technology for increasing efficiency and lowering cost in various applications involving advanced power generation systems, metallurgical operations and chemical processes. These benefits will be translated to the public through lower cost for goods and services in addition to lower cost for energy. Increased national security will come from decreased dependence on imported oil by making local resources, such as coal and natural gas, competitive in energy generation markets. Finally, making low cost oxygen available in these industries results in cleaner power production and reduced emissions of polluting gases. Many other industries such as steel, glass, non-ferrous metals, refining, chemicals, and pulp and paper, that are also intensive users of processed oxygen, are also expected to realize significant cost, efficiency, environmental, and productivity benefits as a result of IEMC membrane based oxygen production. Eliminating potential hazards and accidents of transporting high purity oxygen along with providing efficiency improvements, energy savings and reduced emissions of polluting gases across a broad range of industries will all combine together to provide a significant benefit to the general public and the US industrial sector.
- Research Organization:
- HiFunda LLC, Salt Lake City, UT (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- SC0013248
- OSTI ID:
- 1483303
- Type / Phase:
- SBIR (Phase I)
- Report Number(s):
- HF2015.SBIR.13248.1F
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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