Evaluation of Reaction Mechanism of PCFC Composite Cathodes by Utilizing Patterned Thin Film Model Electrodes

For detailed and quantitative analysis of the reaction mechanism in a composite cathode for proton-conducting ceramic-electrolyte fuel cells (PCFCs), a new type of model electrode was proposed. In this work, patterned thin film composite electrode was designed to model the reaction in a porous composite cathode of PCFCs while simplifying the complicated microstructures. The model composite electrode was fabricated with La0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ (LSC) and BaZr0.8Yb0.2O3-δ (BZYb) as an MIEC cathode and an electrolyte materials, respectively, by helps of photolithography and pulsed laser deposition. By utilizing the model composite electrode, one can expect to directly evaluate contributions of addition of electrolyte particles into composite cathode and to understand the mechanism of the cathodic reaction further.