Investigation of La2NiO4+δ-based cathodes for SDC–carbonate composite electrolyte intermediate temperature fuel cells

Lanthanum nickelate based oxides, including La2NiO4+δ (LN), La2Ni0.8Co0.2O4+δ (LNC82) and La2Ni0.8Fe0.2O4+δ (LNF82), were investigated as cathodes for intermediate temperature fuel cells with samaria doped ceria (SDC)–carbonate composite electrolytes. These oxides were synthesized by glycine–nitrate process and characterized by XRD and SEM, showing that all samples annealed at 800 °C for 2 h exhibit a K2NiF4 phase and a foam-like structure. The electrochemical properties of these cathodes were evaluated by fabricating and testing fuel cells with two kinds of composite electrolytes, SDC-20 wt.% (0.53Li/0.47Na)2CO3 and SDC-30 wt.% (0.67Li/0.33Na)2CO3, referred to as SDC(53L47N)20 and SDC(67L33N)30, respectively. Among these three cathodes, LNC82 shows the best cell performances at 500–600 °C. Moreover, fuel cells with SDC(67L33N)30 composite electrolyte present much higher power output than those with SDC(53L47N)20 composite electrolyte. It reveals that cobalt doping greatly enhances the electrochemical property of lanthanum nickelate, and such cathodes are more compatible with the SDC(67L33N)30 composite electrolyte.