The parallel pathways of hydrogen oxidation reaction on high active decorated Ni–YSZ electrode in electrochemical cell with GDC protective layer

• Kinetics of hydrogen oxidation at Ni–YSZ electrode was investigated. • The presence of a GDC layer makes it possible to increase the electrode activity. • It was found that the mechanism of hydrogen oxidation includes two parallel pathways. • The effect of oxygen partial pressure on the rates of parallel pathways was shown. In this study, we considered the electrochemical behavior of a symmetrical electrochemical cell with a highly conductive supporting La 0.88 Sr 0.12 Ga 0.82 Mg 0.18 O 2.85 electrolyte, a protective Ce 0.82 Gd 0.18 O 2–δ layer and highly active Ni + Zr 0.84 Y 0.16 O 1.92 electrodes in H 2 +H 2 O+Ar gas mixtures at constant partial pressure of H 2 , H 2 O and constant ratio pH 2 /pH 2 O. It is shown that the presence of a protective Ce 0.82 Gd 0.18 O 2–δ layer makes it possible to significantly increase the electrode activity by about 7 times at 800 °C and about 24 times at 700 °C. After the introduction of highly dispersed particles of cerium oxide into the electrode by the method of solution impregnation, the polarization resistance of electrode was about 0.03 Ω cm 2 at 800 °C. It is shown that in the case of decorated electrodes, the mechanism of hydrogen oxidation includes two parallel pathways. One is similar to the hydrogen oxidation route for conventional nickel–ceramic electrodes, and the second includes slow stages of oxygen ions transport both in ceria particles and in the protective Ce 0.82 Gd 0.18 O 2–δ layer. It is shown for the first time that with an increase in oxygen partial pressure the ratio of the rates of these pathways changes.