Ceramic coatings

Protective coatings

Ionotec produces conductive, resistive and insulating coatings on ceramic and metal substrates tailored to specific needs, such as:

• Electrical isolation
• Thermal insulation
• Protection against chemical corrosion, especially by sodium or sulphur
• Prevention of arcing e.g. in X-ray tubes

Conductive membranes

Some applications such as solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) require conductive thick-film layers designed to operate at high temperatures as solid electrolytes or as electrodes.  The ceramic coatings can be made either fully dense or intentionally porous, and stacked on slotted metal substrates as shown in this membrane electrode assembly. 

Ceramic coatings such as zirconium oxide on metal foil can be made either electrically insulating or electrically conductive by doping treatments, incorporation of a metallic component, and appropriate firing treatments.     

Electrodes

There are also low-temperature applications such as the surface treatment of conventional electrodes in order to limit corrosion and to provide stable performance in electrolysis. Identifying cost-effective alternatives to conventional noble-metal electrodes such as platinum is becoming increasingly important without loss of the characteristics important to successful electrode operation

• durability
• resistance to chemical corrosion
• adherence to the substrate
• voltage stability under electrolysis
• current reversibility
• efficiency for specific reactions

Solving such problems demands considerable expertise in materials chemistry which we may be able to help with. Please contact us to discuss your application in confidence.

Examples of coatings

Examples of substrates