Fabrication of La1-xSrxCoO3-delta thin layers on porous supports by a polymeric sol-gel process

A polymeric sol-gel process was developed to fabricate porous thin layers of the perovskite-type La0.3Sr0.7CoO3-delta for membrane applications. A spin-coating technique was used for deposition of the layer on porous alpha- and gamma-Al2O3 supports. Both supported and non-supported membranes were characterized by means of thermal analysis, X-ray powder diffraction, particle size analysis, scanning electron microscopy and pernporometry. The main phase formed-upon heating-in air above 400 degrees C is cubic perovskite, although traces of SrCO3 and of an unknown phase can be observed up to 800 degrees C. Above this temperature, strong chemical interaction occurs between the deposited perovskite layer and the support material. The effects of the sintering temperature and the type of the La-precursor on the pore-size distribution were investigated.