A strategy for improving the sinterability and electrochemical properties of ceria-based LT-SOFCs using bismuth oxide additive

Abstract The introduction of an appropriate amount of Bi 2 O 3 is advantageous for improving the sinterability of SNDC, resulting in a decrease in the sintering temperature to 1150 °C of the half-cell with a high density electrolyte. The sintering behavior and electrochemical properties is investigated systematically. The ionic conductivity of 5ESB-SNDC is increased significantly compared to that of the conventional SNDC due to the fast oxygen ion transport along the ESB. Series xESB-SNDC electrolyte is applied to anode supported single cells with the structure of NiCuO-SNDC|xESB-SNDC|ESB-LSM from 450 to 650 °C. A higher maximum power densities (MPD) and lower ohmic resistance (R o ) are obtained with the addition of ESB. The power output for composite electrolyte cell is very encouraging，reaching 129 mW cm −2 at 450 °C for 5ESB-SNDC(20 μm). The results demonstrate that ESB addition is an effective strategy to optimize ceria-based low-temperature SOFCs (LT-SOFCs).