Influence of sintering support design on the properties of NiO-YSZ anode support micro-tubes

The effects of the sintering support design on the microstructural and mechanical properties of NiO/YSZ anode support micro-tubes are investigated in this study. For this purpose, a number of micro-tubes of the same geometrical properties are fabricated via extrusion method from the same extrusion paste. The micro-tubes are then sintered at the same temperature on sintering plates with different C- and V-type sintering channels designed. The micro-tubes after sintering are found to have similar geometric properties. However, the micro structural investigations and three point bending tests indicate that the microstructural properties of the micro tubes are strongly influenced by the sintering plate design. As a result, the flexural strength of the micro-tubes are found to be different. Among the cases considered, the micro-tubes of V2 (half of the micro-tube is initially in the V-type channel) and V4 (whole micro-tube is initially in the V-type channel) design provide relatively fine microstructure and thus relatively higher flexural strength values at a reliability of 80%. The flexural strengths of these micro-tubes are also found to be more consistent.