Corrosion performance of ceramic materials in slagging environments

Conceptual designs of advanced combustion systems that use coal as a feedstock require high-temperature furnaces and heat-transfer surfaces that can operate at temperatures much higher than those prevalent in current coal-fired power plants. The combination of elevated temperatures and hostile combustion environments requires the development and application of advanced ceramic materials in these designs. The objectives of the present program are to evaluate the chemistry of gaseous and condensed products that arise during combustion of coal; corrosion behavior of candidate materials in air, sing, and salt environments for application in the combustion environments; and residual mechanical properties of the materials after corrosion.