In-situ construction of La1 − xSrxAlO3−δ/Li2CO3 electrolyte for low-temperature solid oxide fuel cells
摘要
Achieving high ionic conductivity and long-term stability at the medium/low temperature range, i.e., 300–600 °C, is the development trend of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). Herein, we utilized a rhombohedral perovskite LaAlO3 via Sr2+ doping to tune its ionic conductivity, as a pristine electrolyte precursor La1 − xSrxAlO3−δ (LSAO), and simultaneously employed the Ni0.8Co0.15Al0.05LiO2−δ (NCAL) as both cathode and anode to assemble fuel cells. The molten lithium-containing compound (i.e., LiOH/Li2CO3), generated inside the electrode and subsequently infiltrated through the electrolyte, can composite with LSAO at elevated working temperatures (e.g., 550 °C) to produce a LSAO/Li2CO3 heterostructure. This was beneficial to the gas tightness of the electrolyte layer and simultaneously established a pathway for proton migration along the heterointerfaces. Consequently, a single fuel cell device utilizing the in-situ forming LSAO/Li2CO3 heterogeneous electrolyte achieves a peak power density (PPD) of 1010 mW cm− 2 with an OCV of 1.10 V at 550 °C. Through in-situ construction, this work explores a novel approach to designing heterogeneous electrolytes for low temperature (LT)-SOFCs.