Design of a Mixed Ionic/Electronic Conducting Oxygen Transport Membrane Pilot Module

Abstract

Abstract In the last years, a lot of ceramic materials were developed that, at higher temperatures, have a high electrical conductivity and a high conductivity of oxygen ions. Such mixed ionic/electronic conductors can be used to produce high‐purity oxygen. This work focuses on the realization of a pilot membrane module, with BSCF (Ba 0.5 Sr 0.5 Co 0.8 Fe 0.2 O 3‐δ ) perovskite selected as the membrane material. An amount of 500 kg of powder was industrially fabricated, spray‐granulized and pressed into tubes. The best operation conditions concerning energy consumption were calculated, and a module reactor was designed operating at 850 °C, with an air pressure of 15–20 bar on the feed site and a low vacuum of about 0.8 bar on the permeate site. Special emphasis was placed on joining alternatives for ceramic tubes in metallic bottoms. A first laboratory module was tested with a membrane area of 1 m 2 and then advanced to a pilot module with 570 tubes and a capability of more than 300 000 L of pure oxygen per day.