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Optimizing the densification of BaCe0.2Zr0.7Y0.1O3-δ proton conducting electrolyte using Fe2O3, Mn2O3 and ZnO sintering aids

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Abstract

The development of SOFCs aims to reduce the operating temperature of the cells, maintaining the same level of efficiency with protonic conduction electrolytes, as they have low activation energy. In this context, comprehending the properties of these materials and devising methods that facilitate the production of dense ceramics are crucial aspects of this research. To address these issues, we added Fe2O3, Mn2O3 and ZnO as sintering aids to investigate their influence on BaCe0.2Zr0.7Y0.1O3-δ obtained by Pechini method. The sintering occurred via liquid phase sintering, resulting in densities higher than 96%. The barium carbonate reminiscent from calcination reacted with Fe and Mn arising other phases, which were identified through X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM). Conversely, the addition of ZnO did not result in additional phases. These unexpected phases affected directly the bulk conductivity and the activation energy for conduction.

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The data that support the findings of this work are available on request from the corresponding author.

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Funding

This work was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001; CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico Finance Code: 406915/2021-0; Fundação Araucária de Apoio ao Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico do Estado do Paraná.

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  1. PPGECM – Postgraduate Program in Materials Engineering and Science, UEPG – State University of Ponta Grossa, Carlos Cavalcanti Avenue, 4748, Ponta Grossa – PR, 84030-900, Brazil

    Flavia Nocera Viechineski, Kethlinn Ramos, Adilson Luiz Chinelatto & Adriana Scoton Antonio Chinelatto

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  1. Flavia Nocera Viechineski
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  2. Kethlinn Ramos
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  3. Adilson Luiz Chinelatto
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FNV: Conceptualization, Methodology, Validation, Formal Analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data Curation, Writing—original draft. KR: Formal Analysis, Investigation, Validation, Writing—review & editing. ALC: Conceptualization, Funding Acquisition, Supervision, Project Administration. ASAC: Conceptualization, Funding Acquisition, Supervision, Project Administration.

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Correspondence to Kethlinn Ramos.

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Viechineski, F.N., Ramos, K., Chinelatto, A.L. et al. Optimizing the densification of BaCe0.2Zr0.7Y0.1O3-δ proton conducting electrolyte using Fe2O3, Mn2O3 and ZnO sintering aids. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 34, 2165 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-023-11560-x

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