Vacuum cold sprayed nanostructured La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3−δ as a high-performance cathode for porous metal-supported solid oxide fuel cells operating below 600 °C. (September 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zhang, S.-L.; Shang, Y.-B.; Li, C.-X.; Li, C.-J.
• Is Part Of: Materials today energy. Volume 21(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-09
• Subjects: Low temperature-solid oxide fuel cell -- Porous metal support -- Vacuum cold spray -- Nanostructured cathode -- Sr segregation -- Stability; Energy development -- Periodicals; Energy industries -- Periodicals; Power resources -- Periodicals; Energy policy -- Periodicals; Energy development; Energy industries; Energy policy; Power resources; Electronic journals; Periodicals; 621.042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mtener.2021.100815
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2468-6069

Abstract

Abstract: Porous metal-supported solid oxide fuel cells (PMS-SOFCs) demonstrate potential to dramatically reduce their costs while simultaneously enhancing the durability of SOFCs. However, owing to the unsatisfactory performance improvement of PMS-SOFCs at low temperatures and available fabrication processes, their commercial applications are limited. In this study, exceptional performance of PMS-SOFCs for electricity generation at low temperatures (400–600 °C) with vacuum cold sprayed (VCS) nanostructured La0.6 Sr0.4 Co0.2 Fe0.8 O3−δ (LSCF) as the high-activity cathode, the plasma-sprayed Ce0.8 Gd0.2 O2−δ /La0.8 Sr0.2 Ga0.8 Mg0.2 O3−δ (GDC/LSGM) bilayer as the electrolyte, and a cermet consisting of the nickel–gadolinium-doped-ceria (Ni–GDC) composite as the anode. By carefully controlling the spray particle size, a nanostructured LSCF cathode is obtained, and the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is activated. Consequently, the microstructurally optimized cell exhibits remarkable peak power densities of >1 W/cm 2 at 600 °C and >0.2 W/cm 2 at 450 °C. Moreover, this nanostructured cathode maintains high activity over 1000 h at 550 °C due to the stable microstructure, strontium (Sr) surface segregation, and the exceptional stability of PMS-SOFCs. Our results demonstrate a simple route to dramatically improve the performance and stability of PMS-SOFCs operating at low temperatures by using a nanoscale cathode for activity toward the ORR. Graphical abstract: Image 1 Highlights: Vacuum cold spray (VCS) was successfully applied to deposit nanostructured La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3−δ ( LSCF) cathode. The polarization resistance of the VCS LSCF cathode is 0.06 Ω cm 2 at 600 °C. Nanostructured LSCF cathode yield a stable performance at 550 °C for >1000 h. (PMS-SOFC) yield a remarkable Pmax of >1 W/cm 2 at 600 °C and >0.2 W/cm 2 at 450 °C.