A new hot gas filter for removal of particulates upstream of gas turbines is described and compared with a device called a candle. Candle filters are made in the shape of a large test tube from ceramic materials bonded with a glassy phase. The filtering membrane is fairly thick making candles relatively heavy. A thinner filter would be easier to support, more tolerant of thermal shock, and would offer less resistance to flow. A filter of a ceramic/ceramic composite may achieve these goals and specimens are being fabricated by depositing a ceramic material on a ceramic fiber preform by chemical vapor infiltration. The ceramic matrix is silicon carbide and the ceramic fiber reinforcement is alumina-boria-silica. Progress toward filter development is described.

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