Simultaneous Performance and Stability Enhancement in Intermediate Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cells by Powder-Atomic Layer Deposited LSCF@ZrO₂ Cathodes

Employing porous structures is essential in high-performance electrochemical energy devices. However, obtaining uniform functional coatings on high-tortuosity structures can be challenging, even with specialized processes such as atomic layer deposition (ALD). Herein, a novel method for achieving a porous composite electrode for solid oxide fuel cells by coating La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3-delta (LSCF) powders with ZrO2 using a powder ALD process is presented. Unlike conventional ALD, powder ALD can be used to fabricate extremely uniform coatings on porous electrodes with a thickness of tens of micrometers. The powder ALD ZrO2 coating is found to effectively suppress chemical degradation of the LSCF electrodes. The cell with the powder ALD coated cathode shows a 2.2 times higher maximum power density and 60% lower thermal degradation in activation resistance than the bare LSCF cathode cell at 700-750 degrees C. The result demonstrated in this study is expected to have significant implications for high-performance and durable electrodes in energy conversion/storage devices.