On the manufacturing of low temperature activated Sr0.9La0.1TiO3-δ-Ce1-xGdxO2-δ anodes for solid oxide fuel cell

Abstract

Lanthanum doped strontium titanate – gadolinium doped cerium oxide (LST-GDC) anodic layers are sintered in air and further reduced in-situ at low temperature (750°C) avoiding usu-ally performed pre-reduction treatment at high temperature. The influence of various milling techniques and of powders with different specific surface area, on the microstructures of screen-printed anodes, is investigated. The combination of milling and sonication processes is efficient in reducing aggregation of the anode powders. The anode performance is improved when a planetary milling step is involved in the preparation of the screen printing inks. The use of gadolinium doped cerium oxide with high specific surface area decreases the polariza-tion resistance. The rate of hydrogen oxidation is also enhanced by increasing porosity.