Preparation and characterization of barium cerate-based thick membranes using a screen printing process

A screen printing process is developed to prepare thick BaCe0.9Nd0.1O3 (BCN) membranes from a fine BaCe0.9Nd0.1O3 powder made by co-precipitation from homogeneous oxalate solution. The microstructure and morphology of the membranes are investigated for different preparation conditions. Crack-free dense membranes less than 10 μm in thickness are obtained. Nitrogen permeation test proves the membrane to be gas-tight. The electrical measurement by Ac impedance spectroscopy shows that both dense and porous membranes exhibit a characteristic conductivity behavior, which consists of three regimes with different slopes. The conduction activation energies obtained from conductivity curves are in the range of 40 kJ/mol, which is much lower than the bulk materials.