Interaction between (La, Sr)MnO3 cathode and Ni–Mo–Cr metallic interconnect with suppressed chromium vaporization for solid oxide fuel cells

Interaction between (La0.8Sr0.2)0.90MnO3 (LSM) cathode and newly developed Ni–Mo–Cr metallic interconnect is investigated at 900 °C under operation conditions of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The results show that chromium deposition on the LSM cathodes in the presence of Ni–Mo–Cr interconnect is remarkably reduced as compared to that in the presence of a conventional Fe–Cr metallic interconnect (RA446). In contact with the Ni–Mo-Cr interconnect the overpotential, η, for the O2 reduction reaction on LSM cathode decreased from 529 to 111 mV during the 1200 min current passage at 200 mA/cm2. In contrast, η increased from 464 to 561 mV for the reaction in the presence of a RA446 interconnect. The decrease in η clearly indicates that chromium poisoning effect of the Ni–Mo–Cr interconnect is also significantly suppressed as compared to that with conventional Fe–Cr interconnect materials. The suppressed Cr deposition and poisoning effects observed on the LSM cathodes demonstrate promising potential of the Ni–Mo–Cr alloy as new interconnect materials with significant suppressed chromium vaporization and deposition for SOFCs.