Synthesis and characterization of alumina-coated aluminum sponges manufactured by sintering and dissolution process as possible structured reactors

Al2O3–Al sponges were manufactured by sintering and dissolution process with the aim of using these materials as structured catalytic reactors. For this purpose, several synthesis conditions were examined for the design of the cellular material, such as: particle size of NaCl, weight fraction of Al, compaction pressure, and sintering temperature or time. An alumina layers was grown on top of the aluminum surfaces during both: sintering and thermal treatment. The obtained results showed that the synthesized materials could be promising as structured reactors for endothermic or exothermic reactions.