High-temperature compatible nickel silicide thermometer and heater for catalytic chemical microreactors

Integration of heaters and thermometers is important for agile and accurate control and measurement of the thermal reaction conditions in microfabricated chemical reactors (microreactors). This paper describes development and operation of nickel silicide heaters and temperature sensors for temperatures exceeding 700 °C. The heaters and thermometers are integrated with chemical microreactors for heterogeneous catalytic conversion of gasses, and thermally activated catalytic conversion of CO to CO₂ in the reactors is demonstrated. The heaters and thermometers are shown to be compatible with operation temperatures exceeding 700 °C.