Effect of Aging on the Electrochemical Performance of LSM-YSZ Cathodes

Abstract

Investigations of degradation mechanisms of solid oxide fuel cells are crucial for achieving a widespread commercialization of the technology. In this work, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was applied for studying the aging effect on LSM-YSZ cathodes exposed to humidified air at 900°C for up to 3000 h. EIS spectra were fitted by a transmission line model for estimating relevant parameters associated with the LSM/YSZ charge transfer reaction and the oxide ion conduction through the YSZ network. For the reference non-aged sample, the ionic conductivity values are the expected ones for YSZ with 1 eV activation energy and no dependency on oxygen partial pressure (pO2), while the charge transfer resistance presents an activation energy of 1.6 eV and is proportional to (pO2)−0.31±0.08. These values agree with those reported in literature, validating the used model. The charge transfer resistance shows no clear tendency with aging time, while the ionic conductivity decreases up to ∼79%. Accordingly, the electrochemically active thickness contracts from 60–135 μm to 45–60 μm. The changes observed in the cathode transport and electrochemical properties are mostly explained by the evolution of the phases present in agreement with results previously reported in the literature.