Precursor solution additives improve desiccated La0.6Sr0.4Co0.8Fe0.2O3–x infiltrated solid oxide fuel cell cathode performance

Here, the addition of the surfactant Triton X-100 or the chelating agent citric acid to Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) La0.6Sr0.4Co0.8Fe0.2O3–x (LSCF) precursor nitrate solutions is shown via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) to reduce average infiltrate nano-particle size and improve infiltrate phase purity. In addition, the desiccation of LSCF precursor solutions containing the aforementioned organic solution additives further reduces the average LSCF infiltrate nano-particle size and improves the low-temperature infiltrate phase purity. In particular, CaCl2-desiccation reduces the average size of Triton X-100 derived (TXD) LSCF particles fired at 700 °C from 48 to 22 nm, and reduces the average size of citric acid derived LSCF particles fired at 700 °C from 50 to 41 nm. Modeling and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) tests indicate that particle size reductions alone are responsible for desiccation-induced cathode performance improvements such as CaCl2-desiccated TXD La0.6Sr0.4Co0.8Fe0.2O3-x – Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95 (LSCF-GDC) cathodes reaching a polarization resistance of 0.17 Ωcm2 at 540 °C, compared to 600 °C for undesiccated TXD LSCF-GDC cathodes. This excellent low-temperature performance, combined with a low open-circuit 540 °C degradation rate, suggests that the desiccation of organic-additive-containing infiltrate precursor solutions may be useful for the development of durable, high-power, low-temperature SOFCs.