Hexagonal manganites, RMnO
3
(R = Sc, Y, Ho-Lu),
are
potential oxygen storage materials for air separation due to their
reversible oxygen storage and release properties. Their outstanding
ability to absorb and release oxygen at relatively low temperatures
of 250–400 °C holds promise of saving energy compared
to current industrial methods. Unfortunately, the low temperature
of operation also implies slow kinetics of oxygen exchange in these
materials, which would make them inefficient in applications such
as chemical looping air separation. Here, we show that the oxidation
kinetics of RMnO
3
can be improved through Ti
4+
-doping as well as by increasing the rare earth cation size. The
rate of oxygen absorption of nanocrystalline RMn
1–
x
Ti
x
O
3
(R =
Ho, Dy;
x
= 0, 0.15) was investigated by thermogravimetric
analysis, X-ray absorption near-edge structure, and high-temperature
X-ray diffraction (HT-XRD) with in situ switching of atmosphere from
N
2
to O
2
. The kinetics of oxidation increases
for larger R and even more with Ti
4+
donor doping, as both
induce expansion of the
ab
-plane, which reduces the
electrostatic repulsion between oxygen in the lattice upon oxygen
ion migration. Surface exchange rates and activation energies of oxidation
were determined from changes in lattice parameters observed through
HT-XRD upon in situ switching of atmosphere.