Application Of Membrane Reactor Research Articles

Novel Ni–Ru/CeO2 catalysts for low-temperature steam reforming of methane

Upgrading of biogas and biomethane into H2-rich streams by steam reforming is regarded as an effective strategy to reduce fossil fuel consumption contributing to the transition towards a green energy system. In this context, novel reactor configurations such as membrane reactors appear a promising route for process intensification, but they require novel catalysts more active at low temperatures, stable, and resistant to coke formation. In this work, we prepared and tested structured catalysts characterized by a low Ni content (7 wt%) and a very low Ru content (≤1 wt%) supported on ceria and deposed onto SiC monoliths. Catalysts were tested at low temperatures (<600 °C), i.e. at temperatures suitable for applications in Pd-based membrane reactors. Fresh and used catalysts were characterized by ICP-MS, N2 physisorption, XRD, TEM, SEM-EDS, XPS and H2-TPR to identify the physicochemical properties affecting the catalytic activity. The catalysts showed good activity towards methane reforming, stable performance, and good resistance to coke formation. Ruthenium affects both the intrinsic catalytic activity and the resistance to the inhibiting effect of steam on the reaction rate. This is related to improved redox properties due to the intimacy between the active metals and their strong-metal-support-interaction with the ceria. Finally, our catalysts show self-activation under reaction conditions, which is an interesting property for applications.

Oxygen transport mechanism and the effect of microstructure on the oxygen response behavior of an oxygen-sensitive composite Ce0.9Gd0.1O2-ẟ – La0.6Sr0.4FeO3-ẟ at high temperature

Compositions like gadolinium doped cerium oxide Ce0.9Gd0.1O2-ẟ and strontium doped lanthanum ferrite La0.6Sr0.4FeO3-ẟ, or their composites are well known in the field of fuel cell electrolyte, oxygen transporting membrane and catalytic reactor applications. This work offers insight into composite material's oxygen response characteristics, taking Ce0.9Gd0.1O2-ẟ and La0.6Sr0.4FeO3-ẟ in 70: 30 wt percent. One pot sol-gel method was employed for the powder synthesis. The powder was characterized by TG-DSC, XRD, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). FESEM-EDX and EDX-line profiling techniques were used to check the compositional homogeneity of sintered bodies. Oxygen response tests were conducted from ambient (20 % O2) to 100 % O2 concentration, using bulk samples sintered at three different temperatures, i.e., 1000, 1150, and 1250 °C at a fixed soaking time of 4 hours. The sintered specimens' apparent porosity, bulk density, surface morphology, and electrical conductivity were also examined. The sintering temperature significantly impacts response behavior as the porosity and grain size of the sintered body plays a vital role in sensing performance. The mechanism of response towards oxygen is also discussed. Sample 73–100 displayed the best performance among others. We achieved the lowest response and recovery time of 15 – 48 sec and 45 – 80 sec from a 0.60 mm thick bulk material at 950 °C. Harsh environments were intentionally created to check the reliability and reproducibility of the response data. This material could be a good candidate as an oxygen gas sensor at high temperatures owing to its good sensitivity, reliability, reversibility, and stability.

Fenton-like membrane reactor assembled by electron polarization and defect engineering modifying Co3O4 spinel for flow-through removal of organic contaminants

The application of Fenton-like membrane reactors for water purification offers a promising solution to overcome technical challenges associated with catalyst recovery, reaction efficiency, and mass transfer typically encountered in heterogeneous batch reaction modes. This study presents a dual-modification strategy encompassing electron polarization and defect engineering to synthesize Al-doped and oxygen vacancies (OV)-enriched Co3O4 spinel catalysts (ACO-OV). This modification empowered ACO-OV with exceptional performance in activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for the removal of organic contaminants. Moreover, the ACO-OV@polyethersulfone (PES) membrane/PMS system achieved organic contaminant removal through filtration (with a reaction kinetic constant of 0.085 ms−1), demonstrating outstanding resistance to environmental interference and high operational stability. Mechanistic investigations revealed that the exceptional catalytic performance of this Fenton-like membrane reactor stemmed from the enrichment of reactants, exposure of reactive sites, and enhanced mass transfer within the confined space, leading to a higher availability of reactive species. Theoretical calculations were conducted to validate the beneficial intrinsic effects of electron polarization, defect engineering, and the confined space within the membrane reactor on PMS activation and organic contaminant removal. Notably, the ACO-OV@PES membrane/PMS system not only mineralized the targeted organic contaminants but also effectively mitigated their potential environmental risks. Overall, this work underscores the significant potential of the dual-modification strategy in designing spinel catalysts and Fenton-like membrane reactors for efficient organic contaminant removal.

Scalable Room-Temperature Synthesis of a Hydrogen-Sieving Zeolitic Membrane on a Polymeric Support

Synthesis of H2-sieving membranes for high-temperature applications is highly desired for improving the energy efficiency of H2 production from steam reforming and developing a low-cost solution for precombustion carbon capture. Zeolite-based membranes are ideal for this because they possess excellent hydrothermal stability. However, current methods to synthesize H2-sieving zeolite membranes rely on hydrothermal synthesis on expensive ceramic supports followed by postsynthetic functionalization to shrink the effective pore size. The scalable synthesis approach on a low-cost polymeric support implementable at room temperature is highly desired to advance applications based on H2-sieving membranes. Herein, we report the room-temperature fabrication of H2-sieving zeolitic membranes by simply assembling sodalite precursor, i.e., RUB-15 nanosheets, on a porous polybenzimidazole support. The presence of adsorbed surfactants on the nanosheets led to an entropically driven ordering of the nanosheets witnessed by a sharp (200) d-spacing peak by X-ray diffraction. The intersheet gap was successfully eliminated by the ion exchange of cationic surfactants by a diluted acetic acid solution. The resulting zeolitic films show attractive H2/CO2 and H2/CH4 separation performances at elevated temperatures. The fabrication of H2-sieving zeolitic membranes without resorting to hydrothermal synthesis or high-temperature activation is expected to push the efforts to scale up zeolite membranes for application in gas separation and membrane reactors.

An overview of wastewater treatment using combined heterogeneous photocatalysis and membrane distillation

The need for efficient remediation solutions to wastewater has risen due to the concerning prevalence of toxic organic pollutants. It is possible for the linked photocatalysis-membrane separation system to concurrently achieve the photoreaction of pollutants and their removal from wastewater in order to accomplish the goal of completely purifying the wastewater. This investigation's objective is to provide analytical overview of the photocatalytic and membrane coupling process, photocatalytic membrane reactors, and the potential applications of these technologies in the treatment of wastewater for the persistent organic matter removal. In the review, an examination of photocatalytic and membrane processes to remove organic compounds from wastewater is presented. Based on the literature analysis, it was observed that the application of photocatalytic membrane reactors is significantly influenced by a wide variety of factors. Some of these factors include pollutant concentration, dissolved oxygen, aeration, pH, and hydraulic retention time. Light intensity is another factor that has a significant influence. It was also revealed how distillation membranes work when integrated with photocatalytic process. This brief overview will help researchers understand how successful coupled photocatalytic and membrane distillation are in the treatment of wastewater containing organic pollutants.

Hydrophilic metal-chelated membrane for biocatalytic membrane reactor application

Hydrophilic metal-chelated membrane for biocatalytic membrane reactor application

Zeolite-based catalytic membrane reactors for thermo-catalytic conversion of CO2.

Zeolite-based catalytic membrane reactors have been successfully applied in overcoming the thermodynamic limitations of CO2 hydrogenations and dry reforming of methane (DRM) reactions. This review summarizes the zeolites as membrane reactor components regarding the permeance, permselectivity, durability, conversion, selectivity, and stability by referring to the synergy of catalyst and membrane. Also, five operation parameters (temperature, pressure, feed ratio, sweeping gas flow rate, and gas hourly space velocity) are introduced regarding their impacts on the performance of membrane reactor. Besides, synthesis methods and conditions for zeolite membranes are critically illustrated in the category. Moreover, representative surface and structure properties of zeolite membranes are discussed by relating to the synthesis-structure-performance relationships. Finally, conclusive remarks are demonstrated and possible solutions to existing challenges are proposed. So far, this is the first time to discuss the applications of zeolite membrane reactors in the CO2 adsorption, separation, activation, and conversion in reforming and hydrogenation processes.

Facile Synthesis and Environmental Applications of Noble Metal-Based Catalytic Membrane Reactors

Noble metal nanoparticle-loaded catalytic membrane reactors (CMRs) have emerged as a promising method for water decontamination. In this study, we proposed a convenient and green strategy to prepare gold nanoparticle (Au NPs)-loaded CMRs. First, the redox-active substrate membrane (CNT-MoS2) composed of carbon nanotube (CNT) and molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) was prepared by an impregnation method. Water-diluted Au(III) precursor (HAuCl4) was then spontaneously adsorbed on the CNT-MoS2 membrane only through filtration and reduced into Au(0) nanoparticles in situ, which involved a “adsorption–reduction” process between Au(III) and MoS2. The constructed CNT-MoS2@Au membrane demonstrated excellent catalytic activity and stability, where a complete 4-nitrophenol transformation can be obtained within a hydraulic residence time of &lt;3.0 s. In addition, thanks to the electroactivity of CNT networks, the as-designed CMR could also be applied to the electrocatalytic reduction of bromate (&gt;90%) at an applied voltage of −1 V. More importantly, by changing the precursors, one could further obtain the other noble metal-based CMR (e.g., CNT-MoS2@Pd) with superior (electro)catalytic activity. This study provided new insights for the rational design of high-performance CMRs toward various environmental applications.

Hydrophobically modified Pd membrane for the efficient purification of hydrogen in light alcohols steam reforming process

The ability to selectively remove H2 from the product has made palladium (Pd) membrane reactor a good choice for steam reforming reaction. However, carbonaceous deposited on the surface of Pd membrane during reaction hindered its industrial application. In order to protect Pd membrane from being poisoned by water and light alcohols, a TS-1/Pd composite membrane was prepared by a facile one-step hydrothermal method combined with silane coupling treatment. The zeolite layer acted as a protective armor by keeping poisonous species away from the Pd bulk, and the silanization process increased the hydrophobicity by reducing the hydroxyl density on the surface of TS-1/Pd composite membrane. After 100 h’s exposure in the steam reforming condition, the percentage of carbon content was only 0.95% for the TS-1/Pd membrane, compared with 13.20% for the pure Pd membrane. The H2 permeability and H2/N2 selectivity of the TS-1/Pd remained constant, while that for pure Pd membrane fell by 50% and 80%, respectively. The significantly improved resistance to carbon deposition provides possibility for the large-scale application of Pd membrane reactor in hydrogen production via steam reforming.

Performance analysis of ammonia decomposition endothermic membrane reactor heated by trough solar collector

In order to promote the engineering application of ammonia-based solar thermal storage systems, a one-dimensional model of an ammonia decomposition endothermic membrane reactor based on actual light condition is established by applying finite time thermodynamics. The reactor is heated by a trough solar collector and equipped with a regenerative preheater, and effects of four parameters including ammonia molar flow rate, ammonia preheated temperature, permeation zone pressure and light intensity on the total heat absorption rate, entropy generation rate and system efficiency are analyzed. The results show that the permeate pressure and light intensity affect the system performance significantly. When the permeate pressure reduces from 1 bar to 0.1 bar, the total heat absorption rate, the system efficiency and the entropy generation rate increase by 32.3%, 22.3% and 16.4%, respectively. When the light intensity increases from 800 W/m2 to 1200 W/m2, the heat absorption rate and the entropy generation rate increase by 53.8% and 38.2%, respectively. The results obtained in this paper provide some guidance for the practical engineering application of ammonia decomposition heat endothermic membrane reactors.

High-pressure CO2 permeation properties and stability of ceramic-carbonate dual-phase membranes

CO 2 permeation properties and stability of ceramic-carbonate dual-phase membranes at high pressures/temperatures are critical to their CO 2 separation and membrane reactor applications, but such data are not available in the literature. This work aims to study the effect of high transmembrane pressure on CO 2 permeation flux and the stability of molten carbonate in the dual-phase samarium-doped ceria (SDC) and molten-carbonate (MC) membranes. Dead-end porous SDC tubular supports were made by a cold isostatic press (CIP)/sintering method with a low porosity (below 7%), and gas-tight SDC-MC membranes were prepared by direct infiltration of molten lithium and sodium carbonate mixture into SDC pores, with a MC volume fraction less than 7%. CO 2 permeation/separation tests were performed on the SDC-MC membranes using feed gas of equal molar CO 2 /N 2 mixture at feed pressures up to 15 atm and sweep gas of helium at 1 atm. CO 2 permeation flux for the SDC-MC membranes depends logarithmically on feed/permeate CO 2 pressure ratio in 660–810 o C. The temperature dependence of CO 2 permeation shows activation energy of 30 kJ/mol. Due to the small MC volume fraction and hence low effective carbonate conductivity, CO 2 permeation of the SDC-MC membranes is dominated by the carbonate ionic conduction in the MC phase. The SDC-MC membranes remain in the same structure, morphology, and gas-tightness after CO 2 separation tests at high feed pressures and temperatures, showing high stability of SDC-MC membranes for high-temperature, high-pressure separation and chemical reaction applications. • Strong ceramic-carbonate dual-phase membranes can be made by the cold isostatic press method. • High-pressure CO 2 permeation flux depends logarithmically on feed/permeate CO 2 partial pressure ratio controlled by carbonate ionic conduction. • Samarium-doped ceria-molten carbonates membranes are stable at high pressures/high temperatures.

High performance oxygen permeation membrane: Sr and Ti co-doped BaFeO3-δ ceramics

Novel cobalt-free perovskite-type oxides of Ba1-xSrxFeO3-δ (x = 0–0.4) and Ba0.6Sr0.4Fe1-yTiyO3-δ (y = 0–0.12) were successfully prepared by traditional solid-state method and systematically characterized as oxygen permeation membranes. When doping strontium ranges from × = 0.2 to 0.4, cubic perovskite-type structure can be stabilized down to ambient temperature for Ba1-xSrxFeO3-δ. The oxygen permeation flux decreases but the structural stability increases slightly with increasing Sr doping level. The Ba0.8Sr0.2FeO3-δ membrane shows the highest oxygen permeation flux of 1.25 mL cm−2 min−1 at 900 °C under air/He gradient oxygen partial pressure condition for a 1 mm thick membrane. The Ti substitution for partial Fe enhances significantly the chemical and structural stability of Ba0.6Sr0.4Fe1-yTiyO3-δ against H2 and CO2 containing atmospheres but at a slight expense of oxygen permeability. The Ba0.6Sr0.4Fe0.92Ti0.08O3-δ membrane, with excellent structural stability and high oxygen permeation flux of 0.93 mL cm−2 min−1 at 900 °C, shows great potential in oxygen separation and related membrane reactor applications.

Entropy generation rate minimization for sulfur trioxide decomposition membrane reactor

Sulfuric acid decomposition is the critical reaction in sulfur-iodide thermochemical cycle to produce oxygen. Sulfuric acid can decompose spontaneously into sulfur trioxide (SO3) and water, and SO3 continues to decompose into oxygen and sulfur dioxide. The application of membrane reactor can effectively improve the conversion rate of SO3 and thermal efficiency of sulfur-iodide cycle. The decomposition of SO3 requires the absorption of a large amount of heat due to its highly endothermic properties, and there are many irreversible processes such as heat transfer, mass transfer, chemical reaction and friction flow in the SO3 membrane reactor. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct thermodynamic analysis and optimization of the decomposition process to reduce the irreversible loss of the membrane reactor system. In this paper, a finite time thermodynamic model of SO3 decomposition membrane reactor is established, and the kinetic parameters of decomposition reaction are deduced and calculated based on experimental data. Firstly, the membrane reactor heated by hot helium gas is solved and used as reference reactor. Secondly, optimal control theory is used to optimize the reference reactor under fixed reactant inlet conditions and outlet conversion rate with total entropy generation rate minimization as optimization objective. The total entropy generation rate of Opt-1 reactor is reduced by 32.7% compared with the reference value. For variable reactor length, the total entropy generation rate of Opt-2 reactor is quadratic optimum at L=0.72 m, which is 34.7% less than the reference value. It is found that the reduction of total entropy generation rate in optimal reactors is mainly achieved by minimizing the entropy generation rate in heat transfer process. The distribution of local entropy generation rate is relatively uniform in the middle position, approximately consistent with the principle of equalization of entropy production rate. The conclusions obtained herein can provide guidelines for the energy-saving design of SO3 decomposition membrane reactors.

Zeolite membranes: Synthesis and applications

Membrane-based technology has attracted considerable attention owing to its low energy consumption, mild operating conditions, and high efficiency. Polymeric membranes are widely utilized in different separation processes for their low cost and highly reproducible preparation. Fouling and the trade-off between permeability and selectivity represent the main drawbacks in the polymeric membrane field. These problems could be overcome by using inorganic membranes that are less prone to fouling due to their hydrophilic nature, high chemical stability, and high permeability and selectivity. Zeolite membranes, a type of inorganic membranes, can separate liquid and gas species (with very similar size and shape) thanks to their defined pore size at a molecular level and high adsorption property. They are studied in different separation processes as gas separation, pervaporation, and desalination. However, they find application, at the industrial level, only for alcohol dehydration by pervaporation process. Indeed, although 30 years are passed since the first scientific papers about the zeolite membrane preparation, many problems are still unsolved, as reproducibility of the synthesis, defects into the zeolite layer, and high manufacturing costs, which caused a limitation to their application on a large scale. In this review, the main zeolite membrane preparation methods and the novelty in their developing and fabricating have been analyzed. Their application in pervaporation and desalination has been discussed. The effect of zeolite membrane topology and chemical composition on natural gas purification has been presented in detail. The application of zeolite membrane reactors in different interesting processes has been discussed. Concluding remarks and future perspective have been also suggested.

Review of membrane technology applications in wastewater treatment and biofuels

The available natural energy sources are insufficient to meet everyone's needs. Due to an increased population, dwindling natural resources, limited natural sources, and environmental issues, it is critical to focus on reproducing, recycling, and reused techniques. Coal is a major source of energy generation in India, but it causes significant environmental pollution. The use of petroleum oil for transportation contributes to global warming, and domestic and industrial waste contributes to pollution. It is critical to consider waste water treatment as well as alternative energy sources such as biofuel. Conventional technology is insufficient in terms of both economics and the environment. Membrane technology is an effective and efficient technology. This paper provides an overview of recent research on membrane technology applications in waste water treatment, biofuel production (such as biodiesel and bioethanol). It also discusses membrane reactors, membrane bioreactors, and mixed matrix membrane reactor applications for biodiesel production, as well as hybrid pervaporization membrane bioreactors, integrated pervaporization membrane bioreactors for bioethanol production, the membrane bioreactors application for waste water treatment.

Catalytic Membrane Reactors: The Industrial Applications Perspective

Catalytic membrane reactors have been widely used in different production industries around the world. Applying a catalytic membrane reactor (CMR) reduces waste generation from a cleaner process perspective and reduces energy consumption in line with the process intensification strategy. A CMR combines a chemical or biochemical reaction with a membrane separation process in a single unit by improving the performance of the process in terms of conversion and selectivity. The core of the CMR is the membrane which can be polymeric or inorganic depending on the operating conditions of the catalytic process. Besides, the membrane can be inert or catalytically active. The number of studies devoted to applying CMR with higher membrane area per unit volume in multi-phase reactions remains very limited for both catalytic polymeric and inorganic membranes. The various bio-based catalytic membrane system is also used in a different commercial application. The opportunities and advantages offered by applying catalytic membrane reactors to multi-phase systems need to be further explored. In this review, the preparation and the application of inorganic membrane reactors in the different catalytic processes as water gas shift (WGS), Fisher Tropsch synthesis (FTS), selective CO oxidation (CO SeLox), and so on, have been discussed.

High Temperature Water Permeable Membrane Reactors for CO2 Utilization

• Membrane for water/gases separation under high temperature and pressure is reviewed. • Water permeable membrane reactors applied in various CO 2 hydrogenations is reviewed. • The mechanism of water/gases separation under harsh conditions is discussed. • Key requirements of zeolite membranes applying in CO 2 hydrogenation is discussed. Converting CO 2 to valuable chemicals via catalytic CO 2 hydrogenation presents a promising way for CO 2 utilization. However, many types of CO 2 hydrogenation are generally conducted under harsh conditions (T≧200 °C and P≧20 bar), yet these reactions are limited by thermodynamic equilibrium. Water is a common by-product in CO 2 hydrogenation reactions. By employing a water permeable membrane reactor to simultaneously remove water from the reaction, not only favors the higher CO 2 conversion by overcoming the limitation of thermodynamic equilibrium, but also protects the catalyst from deactivation caused by water. The development of a suitable membrane reactor for this application has received huge attention worldwide. However, water separation from gases (H 2 , CO 2 , CO) under high temperature and pressure is a major challenge in developing a good performance membrane. Herein, this review contains various high temperature water/gases separating membranes, and their applications in water permeable membrane reactors for CO 2 utilization. The separation and reaction mechanism in the catalytic membrane reactors are discussed in detail. Furthermore, challenges and prospects in the application of this type of catalytic membrane reactor in CO 2 conversion is provided for the future development.

Fabrication of tubular porous titanium membrane electrode and application in electrochemical membrane reactor for treatment of wastewater

In this study, tubular titanium membrane (TTM) /SnO2-Sb/SnO2-Sb-CeO2 porous anode was fabricated and used in continuous tubular membrane reactor for electrochemical treatment of dye wastewater. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) were used to evaluate the morphology and microstructure of the different tubular titanium membrane. Linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) and accelerated service life test are employed to illustrate the performance of TTM/SnO2-Sb/SnO2-Sb-CeO2 porous membrane electrode. It is found that TTM/SnO2-Sb/SnO2-Sb-CeO2 active layer on titanium membrane has compact microstructure, high over-potential for oxygen evolution (2.10V vs saturated calomel electrode). The effects of pore diameter, applied voltage and flow rate on the electro-catalytic property of the tubular porous electrode were investigated. Study shows titanium membrane reactor with an optimized pore diameter of 10μm has the lowest energy consumption which is important for the practical application of electrochemical technology. The performance of titanium tubular membrane reactor is investigated by treating methylene blue (MB) wastewater under the cell voltage of 3.0–4.5V and the flow rate of 2.5–3.5Lmin−1. This continuous titanium membrane electrochemical reactor using solar cell show excellent performance in treating dye wastewater and the further potential application in electrochemical synthesis.

SDC‐SCFZ dual‐phase ceramics: Structure, electrical conductivity, thermal expansion, and O2 permeability

AbstractNew CO2‐resistant dual‐phase Sm0.2Ce0.8O1.925–SrCo0.4Fe0.55Zr0.05O3‐δ (SDC‐SCFZ) ceramics present a promising outlook for potential future applications in membrane reactors and solid oxide fuel cells. Their high oxygen permeation flux and stability in CO2 sweep gas also allow their integration in oxyfuel combustion. Here the structural characteristics, electrical conductivities, thermal expansion behaviors, and oxygen permeabilities of four different SDC‐SCFZ membranes with weight ratios of 10:90, 25:75, 50:50, and 75:25 (SDC:SCFZ) are systematically studied. Among these four SDC‐SCFZ compositions, 0.6 mm‐thick 25 wt% SDC‐75 wt% SCFZ displayed the highest oxygen permeation fluxes that reach 1.26 mL min−1 cm−2 at 950°C and retained its phase integrity under alternating He and CO2 sweep gas over 72 hours of operation. This composite also showed a moderate thermal expansion coefficient of 1.90 × 10−5 K−1 between 30°C and 1000°C and an electrical conductivity of at least 16 S cm−1 at 550°C and above. Modeling studies revealed that the oxygen permeation fluxes through 25SDC‐75SCFZ are limited by surface exchange reactions from 700°C to 800°C and mixed bulk diffusion and surface exchange reactions above 800°C.

Optimization of sintering conditions for improved microstructural and mechanical properties of dense Ce0.8Gd0.2O2-δ-FeCo2O4 oxygen transport membranes

Ce0.8Gd0.2O2-δ-FeCo2O4 composite is an excellent oxygen transport membrane material with good chemical stability for applications in oxygen separation and membrane reactors. To improve microstructural and mechanical properties, sintering profiles for Ce0.8Gd0.2O2-δ-FeCo2O4 composites were optimized. Different sintering temperatures are selected based on our study of phase interactions among the initial powder mixtures using high-temperature X-ray diffraction. The results reveal that the phase interaction at ∼1050 ℃ accelerates densification process, and a further increase of sintering temperature to 1200 ℃ contributes to the homogenization of the pore distribution. A higher density and an improved homogeneity of pore distribution result in enhanced mechanical strength. However, the density decreases once the sintering temperature reaches 1350 ℃. Hence, the optimal sintering temperature considering both microstructural and mechanical properties appears to be 1200 ℃. Sintering at this temperature results in a microstructure with a density exceeding 99 % with only small surface defects and a high average flexural strength of approximately 266 MPa.