Towards an integrated ceramic micro-membrane network: Electroless-plated palladium membranes in cordierite supports
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In this manuscript the authors detail the fabrication of permselective palladium membranes within cordierite mini-channel networks, and their subsequent evaluation for hydrogen purification. Cordierite extruded honeycomb monoliths (64 cpsi) were first washcoated with micropowder -Al2O3 to realize cylindrical surfaces for subsequent deposition of palladium films. A second nanopowder -Al2O3 layer provides a uniform surface for deposition of defect-free palladium films. Electroless plating under kinetic-limited conditions enabled plating of thin (8 m) defect-free palladium films with crystallite sizes of 2 m. Analysis of resulting two-channel membrane systems for hydrogen separation at 350 C demonstrated hydrogen flux of 1.0-5.5 10-3 mol m-2 s-1 and hydrogen-to-helium selectivities of 40-360:1. Lastly, the authors detail a novel microreactor design strategy to employ resulting mini-channel membrane networks as part of a thermally integrated portable reformer for high-purity hydrogen production. 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.