Oxygen permeation of various archetypes of oxygen membranes based on BSCF

Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ tubes, capillaries, capillary modules, and asymmetric membranes were prepared and tested for oxygen permeation in a dead-end vacuum operation mode at temperatures up to 850°C. The capillary module was built up by reactive air brazing using seven capillaries and a supply tube. Two machined discs were used as an end cap and as a connector plate. The oxygen permeation behaves according to Wagner at small driving forces, but significant negative deviations were observed for asymmetric membranes and single capillaries at higher ones. This is caused by pressure drops at the vacuum side for single capillaries. The highest oxygen flux was revealed for the capillary module with 175.5 mL(STP)/min at a low-vacuum pressure of 0.042 bar at 850°C, but the asymmetric membrane showing a little bit higher flux at moderate vacuum pressures above 0.07 bar. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 58: 3195–3202, 2012