BaCo0.7Fe0.22Y0.08O3-δ as an Active Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalyst for Low-Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cells below 600 °C

Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) offer great promise as sustainable energy conversion devices due to their high chemical-to electrical conversion efficiency, flexible fuel sources, and low pollutions. In recent years, much effort has been devoted to developing intermediate temperature SOFCs. Central to the devices is the availability of a highly effective electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction with reduced temperature operation, especially below 600 degrees C. Here we present a novel B-site Y-doped perovskite-type oxide BaCo0.7Fe0.22Y0.08O3-delta (BCFY) with extremely low polarization resistances (e.g., 0.10 Omega cm(2) at 550 degrees C), which is ascribed to high cubic symmetry structure and fast oxygen kinetics. The superior electrocatalytic activity and stability enable BCFY to be a promising cathode candidate toward the application of reduced temperature SOFCs.