Gas Permeation Property of Silicon Carbide Membranes Synthesized by Counter-Diffusion Chemical Vapor Deposition

Takayuki Nagano; Koji Sato; Koichi Kawahara

doi:10.3390/membranes10010011

Gas Permeation Property of Silicon Carbide Membranes Synthesized by Counter-Diffusion Chemical Vapor Deposition

Membranes (Basel). 2020 Jan 6;10(1):11. doi: 10.3390/membranes10010011.

Authors

Takayuki Nagano¹, Koji Sato¹, Koichi Kawahara¹

Affiliation

¹ Japan Fine Ceramics Center, 2-4-1, Mutsuno, Atsuta-ku, Nagoya 456-8587, Japan.

Abstract

An amorphous silicon carbide (SiC) membrane was synthesized by counter-diffusion chemical vapor deposition (CDCVD) using silacyclobutane (SCB) at 788 K. The SiC membrane on a Ni-γ-alumina (Al₂O₃) α-coated Al₂O₃ porous support possessed a H₂ permeance of 1.2 × 10^-7 mol·m^-2·s^-1·Pa^-1 and an excellent H₂/CO₂ selectivity of 2600 at 673 K. The intermittent action of H₂ reaction gas supply and vacuum inside porous support was very effective to supply source gas inside mesoporous intermediate layer. A SiC active layer was formed inside the Ni-γ-Al₂O₃ intermediate layer. The thermal expansion coefficient mismatch between the SiC active layer and Ni-γ-Al₂O₃-coated α-Al₂O₃ porous support was eased by the low decomposition temperature of the SiC source and the membrane structure.

Keywords: alumina; amorphous; chemical vapor deposition; hydrogen; silicon carbide.