One end-dead perovskite hollow fiber membranes for high-purity oxygen production from ambient air

Abstract

The high-purity oxygen production from ambient air through the dense one end-dead perovskite hollow fiber membrane based on Ba 0.5Sr 0.5Co 0.8Fe 0.2O 3-δ prepared by a phase inversion spinning process is reported. High oxygen purity up to 99.7vol% and high oxygen permeation flux of 1.74ml/mincm 2 are obtained after 2-h activation in the initial stage at 950°C under the vacuum degree of 99.0kPa on the core side and the ambient air of 1.0atm on the feed side. The X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy spectrum analysis (EDS) show that the carbonate appears in the spent hollow fiber membrane after 24-h oxygen permeation in the ambient air, which leads to the decline of the oxygen permeation flux. However, the pure oxygen can be produced in one step through the one end-dead hollow fiber membrane without any inert gas, so the second separation is not necessary any more and it is beneficial to the industrial application for high-purity oxygen production. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.