Copper-doped lanthanum ferrites for symmetric SOFCs

Structure stability and electrical conductivity of La1-xSrxFe0.8Cu0.2O3-δ with x = 0.2, 0.4 were investigated both in air and in hydrogen to explore their potential applications as symmetric electrodes for solid oxide fuel cells. La0.8Sr0.2Ga0.8Mg0.2O3-δ (LSGM) electrolyte supported symmetric fuel cells were fabricated and tested in air/hydrogen ambient in 650-800 °C temperature range achieving a maximum power density of 162 mW cm-2. To improve the cell performance, a composite electrode (70 wt% La1-xSrxFe0.8Cu0.2O3-δ -30 wt% Gd0.2Ce0.8O3-δ) was successfully evaluated both at the anode and the cathode sides decreasing the cell polarization resistance to 0.454 Ω cm2 at 800 °C and reaching a single cell maximum power density of 294 mW cm-2.