Microstructure and Connectivity Quantification of Complex Composite Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Electrode Three-Dimensional Networks

Composite electrodes extend the electrochemically active region for solid oxide fuel cells. The complex microstructural and chemical composition of composite cathodes often make them difficult to fully characterize. The discrimination between the two oxide phases of the composite cathode as well as...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Journal of the American Ceramic Society Vol. 94; no. 2; pp. 620 - 627
Main Authors:	Gostovic, Danijel, Vito, Nicholas J., O'Hara, Kathryn A., Jones, Kevin S., Wachsman, Eric D.
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01-02-2011 Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
Subjects:	Cathodes Ceramics Electrodes Materials science Microstructure Networks Phase transitions Phases Scanning electron microscopy Solid oxide fuel cells Three dimensional
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	Composite electrodes extend the electrochemically active region for solid oxide fuel cells. The complex microstructural and chemical composition of composite cathodes often make them difficult to fully characterize. The discrimination between the two oxide phases of the composite cathode as well as between them and the pore phase has been achieved using epoxy impregnation. The active regions of composite cathodes were analyzed at various length scales using focused ion beam/scanning electron microscope (FIB/SEM) and transmission electron microscope techniques. Dual beam FIB/SEM three‐dimensional (3D) reconstructions provided information of various microstructural parameters. Over 5900 nodes were evaluated in these complex 3D networks. Topological connectivity of the composite LCM/ScSZ system was evaluated with the average connectivity ranging between 2.69 and 2.94 for the various phases. Topological length of the composite cathode network ranged between 1.5 and 2.7 μm, with average composite cathode particle sizes between 1 to 4 μm. Such connectivity quantification provides the opportunity for an advanced understanding of the transport processes in composite materials.
Bibliography:	istex:58531EE770AC6BE2B62A600C9BF7FFFB5D227526 ArticleID:JACE4111 ark:/67375/WNG-KTK5DJQ6-2 W. Lee—contributing editor This work was financially supported by the Siemens Energy Inc. and the Department of Energy National Energy Technology Lab under project number DE‐FC6‐05NT42613. ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 ObjectType-Article-2 ObjectType-Feature-1
ISSN:	0002-7820 1551-2916
DOI:	10.1111/j.1551-2916.2010.04111.x