Study of Perovskite Type Air Electrodes for Proton Conducting Ceramic Cells

Abstract

Electrochemical cells based on proton conducting ceramics (PCC) offer a number of potential electrochemical applications. Since proton is the ionic charge carrier, they are utilized in electrochemical devices in which hydrogen or hydrogen containing molecules are the main resources or products. It should also be noted that moderate operating temperatures and low partial oxygen pressure on the fuel electrode in PCCs are advantageous to prevent degradation of the components. One of the critical issues in realizing PCC devices, however, is to find promising materials for air electrode that demonstrate high conductivities and chemical stability. In this work, we focus on BaZrO3 based electrode candidates to be applied for PCCs based on Ba(Zr,Ce,Re)O3 electrolytes (Re: trivalent dopant). Powder specimens are synthesized by a conventional solid state reaction process and their fundamental properties, including structural analyses and electrical conductivities, are investigated. Based on the experimental results, their potentials as air electrodes will be discussed.