Effect of yttria addition on the stability of porous chromium oxide ceramics in supercritical water

Porous chromium oxide (Cr2O3) ceramics were prepared by oxidizing highly porous chromium carbides that were obtained by a reactive sintering method, and were evaluated at temperatures ranging from 375 °C to 625 °C in supercritical water (SCW) environments with a fixed pressure of 25–30 MPa. Reactive element yttrium was introduced to the porous oxide ceramic by adding various amounts of yttria of 5, 10 and 20 wt.%, respectively, prior to reactive sintering. The exposure in SCW shows that the porous chromium oxide is quite stable in SCW at 375 °C. However, the stability decreased with increasing temperature. It is well known that chromium oxide can be oxidized to soluble chromium (VI) species in SCW when oxygen is present. Adding yttria increases the stability of chromium oxide in SCW environments. However, adding yttria higher than 5 wt.% increased the weight loss of porous chromium oxide samples because of the direct dissociation of Y2O3 in SCW.