Influence of temperature on oxygen permeation through ion transport membrane to feed a biomass gasifier

Oxygen-permeable perovskite membranes with mixed ionic-electronic conducting properties can play an important role in the high temperature separation of oxygen from air. A detailed design of a membrane test module is presented, useful to test mechanical resistance and structural stability of Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ (BSCF) capillary membrane in the reactor environment. Preliminary experimental results of membrane permeation tests highlight the positive effect of temperature on perovskite materials. This behaviour is also confirmed by a computational model of char combustion with oxygen permeated through the membrane module, when it is placed inside a gasifier reactor to provide the necessary input of heat to the gasification endothermic process. The results show that the temperature affects the oxygen permeation of the BSCF membrane remarkably. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.