Interfacial compatibility of alumino-borosilicate glass sealants with AISI 441 and YSZ for different atmospheres

• Alkaline-aluminosilicate glasses were checked for their chemical compatibility with AISI 441 and YSZ.
• The prepared diffusion couples were studied as a function of oxidizing and reducing atmospheres.
• Glass seals were mechanically removed from diffusion couple for XRD analysis.
• The interface and microstructure were morphologically characterized by using SEM/dot-mapping.

In the present investigation, the effect of oxidizing and reducing atmospheres have been studied on the bonding and interfacial adhesion of SiO2–B2O3-AO-Al2O3 (A = Ca, Ba) glass sealants with the interconnect AISI 441 and electrolyte yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) for planar solid oxide fuel cell applications. The diffusion couples of glass with AISI 441 and YSZ were prepared by slurry technique and then subjected to heat-treatment at 850 °C for 500 h for both oxidizing as well as reducing atmospheres. The prepared diffusion couples have been characterized using various techniques like X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray dot mapping. The XRD studies indicated the formation of different crystalline phases for oxidizing as well as reducing atmospheres. The overall analysis of resulting microstructure by SEM/dot-mapping revealed good adhesion between calcium alumino-borosilicate glasses with the interconnect and YSZ.