Use of a solid-state oxygen pump to study oxidation kinetics of Cr and Mo

A new method for measuring the amounts of oxygen consumed during the oxidat ion of metals was recently developed for oxygen kinetic studies.(1) This me thod uses a Pt\ZrO2 (Y2O3)\Pt solid-state oxygen pump, based on electro-che mical principles, and is especially suitable for alloy systems where oxidat ion rates are difficult to measure with ass gain methods. The oxidation kin etics of pre chromium and molybdenum have been studied using this new metho d. The results show that this method has clear advantages over the traditio nal thermogravimetric methods in assessing the actual oxidation rates of Cr and Mo, which form volatile oxide species depending on temperature and oxy gen pressure.