Solid oxide electrolysis cell analysis by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy: A review

High temperature water electrolysis based on Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cell (SOEC) is a very promising solution to produce directly pure hydrogen. However, degradation issues occurring during operation still represent a scientific and technological barrier in view of its development at an industrial scale. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) is a powerful in-situ fundamental tool adapted to the study of SOEC systems. Hence, after a quick presentation of EIS principle and data analysis methods, this review demonstrates how EIS can be used: (i) to characterize the performance and mechanisms of SOEC electrodes; (ii) as a complementary tool to study SOEC degradation processes for different cell configurations, in addition to post-test tools such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) or X-ray diffraction (XRD). The use of EIS to establish a systematic SOEC analysis is introduced as well.