Electrochemical study of lithiated transition metal oxide composite as symmetrical electrode for low temperature ceramic fuel cells

In this work, Lithiated NiCuZnOx (LNCZO) composite is synthesized and evaluated as a potential symmetrical electrode for ceria-carbonate composite electrolyte based low temperature ceramic fuel cells. Its crystal structures, the hydrogen oxidation/oxygen reduction electrochemical activities and fuel cell performances are systematically examined on the symmetrical cell configuration. Nano crystallite particles in the form of composite are observed for these oxides. The LNCZO shows relatively high catalytic activities for hydrogen oxidation and oxygen reduction reaction according to the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements. A remarkable low oxygen reduction activation energy of 42 kJ mol−1 is obtained on the LNCZO/ceria-carbonate composite, demonstrating excellent electro-catalytic activity. Especially, the catalytic activity can be further improved in the presence of water in the cathode chamber. The results show that the lithiated transition metal oxide composite is a promising symmetrical electrode for ceria-carbonate electrolyte and composite approach might a probable solution to develop super-performance electrodes for reduced temperature ceramic fuel cells.