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Impedance studies on bismuth-ruthenate-based electrodes

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Abstract

Doped bismuth ruthenates and bismuth ruthenate-stabilized bismuth oxide composites were studied as prospective cathode material for solid oxide fuel cells. Symmetric cells were fabricated on gadolinium-doped ceria electrolytes and studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Ca- and Ag-doped bismuth ruthenate electrodes (5–10 mol%) showed the same characteristic frequency as undoped bismuth ruthenate but with higher activation energy and slightly better performance above ∼550 °C. At 700 °C, area-specific resistance (ASR) of undoped, 5 mol% Ca and 5 mol% Sr-doped bismuth ruthenate electrode was 1.45, 1.24, and 1.41  Ωcm2, respectively. The change in ASR as a function of oxygen partial pressure and current bias suggests that the rate-limiting steps for oxygen reduction in bismuth ruthenate systems are charge transfer and surface diffusion of dissociatively adsorbed oxygen to triple phase boundaries. Introduction of the erbia-stabilized bismuth oxide (ESB) phase reduced both the rate-limiting steps resulting in much improved electrode performance. At 700 °C, composite electrodes containing 31.25–43.75 wt% ESB exhibited an ASR of 0.08–0.11 Ωcm2.

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Acknowledgment

The authors wish to acknowledge the support of the Department of Energy under grant no. DE-FC26-03NT41959 for this work.

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  1. Abhishek Jaiswal

    Present address: NanoGram Corporation, Milpitas, CA, 95035, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    Abhishek Jaiswal & Eric D. Wachsman

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  1. Abhishek Jaiswal
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  2. Eric D. Wachsman
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Correspondence to Eric D. Wachsman.

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Jaiswal, A., Wachsman, E.D. Impedance studies on bismuth-ruthenate-based electrodes. Ionics 15, 1–9 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11581-008-0289-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11581-008-0289-x

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