Evaluation of Nd5Mo3O16+δ as a potential electrode material for symmetrical SOFC
摘要
Symmetrical solid oxide fuel cells (S-SOFCs) are energy-efficient electrochemical power sources that open up new possibilities for clean energy. In this work, the physicochemical properties of fluorite-like Nd5Mo3O16+δ (NMO) have been investigated for the first time to evaluate its potential as an electrode material for S-SOFC. Electrical conductivity measurements under reducing conditions (Ar/H2) at 100–900 °C have revealed thermally activated behavior with predominant electronic conductivity of 1.7 S/cm at 800 °C. The thermal expansion coefficient of NMO in Ar/H2 at 25–900 °C has been determined to be 10.7 ppm/K. No new phases formed when NMO was heated with conventional electrolyte materials up to 950 °C with Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95 (GDC) and 850 °C with Zr0.84Y0.16O1.92 (YSZ). The polarization resistance (Rη) of the NMO electrode at 800 °C has been recorded as 15.1 Ω·cm2 in air and 5.6 Ω·cm2 in an Ar/H2 atmosphere. An electrolyte-supported S-SOFC with the NMO/GDC/YSZ/GDC/NMO configuration has achieved a power density of 14 mW/cm2 at 900 °C. Replacing the NMO cathode with (La0.75Sr0.25)0.95MnO3-δ has led to the increase of the power density to 100 mW/cm2 at 900 °C. Long-term stability tests carried out on both fuel cells under a constant voltage of 0.7 V showed no significant degradation in performance. Thus, the obtained results demonstrated that NMO is a promising candidate for use as an anode material in SOFCs.