Several methods for processing tubular anodes for solid oxide fuel cells have been developed, but many of them are expensive and sophisticated, therefore, there is a great interest in researching the use of a simple process to produce them. In this paper, the results of using slip casting for processing minitubes of NiO-8YSZ with the dimensions of 100x5x1 mm are presented. This is a versatile method for obtaining complex geometries with a suitable surface finish and dimensional precision at low cost compared with ceramic processing which uses high energy consumption and/or has high startup costs. In order to carry out this study, an aqueous slurry of an oxide mixture of NiO-8YSZ with poly-etilenglycol as a dispersant agent was used. The modification of the ratio of water:ceramic powders, the composition NiO:x8YSZ (30, 50 and 70 in wt.) and the casting time (3 to 30 min) were also applied. The minitubes obtained were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and spectroscopy of dispersive energy (EDS). The results show that slip casting is an appropriate method to obtain NiO-8YSZ minitubes. Minitubes of varying composition (30, 50 and 70% in wt. of NiO) with dimensions of 100x5x1 mm were obtained showing an excellent porosity (higher than 96% in v/v) and a homogeneous distribution of NiO and 8YSZ particles. XRD analysis confirms the presence of starting oxides before and after the casting process.
Development of lotus-type porous material for heat pipe application using centrifugal slip casting process
