Rapid oxygen atom capture on perovskite surface boosting the activity and durability of cathode for solid oxide fuel cells

The content and distribution of surface oxygen vacancies are crucial for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) cathodes. Therefore, a facile and rapid oxygen atom capture strategy is developed to modulate the surface oxygen vacancies of the cathode. By controlling the duration of NaBH4 solution reduction, precise modulation of the surface oxygen vacancies of NdBa0.5Sr0.5Co2O5+δ (NBSC) is achieved. Consequently, the processes of oxygen adsorption, dissociation, and diffusion on the surface of the NBSC cathode are enhanced. The research findings demonstrate that NBSC reduced for 10 min (RE-NBSC-10) exhibits optimal ORR catalytic activity and CO2 tolerance. At 800 °C, the Rp of RE-NBSC-10 decreases by 45 %, reaching 0.006 Ω‧cm2. Moreover, the maximum power density (MPD) of the RE-NBSC-10 cathode reaches 1.16 W cm−2, representing a 90.2 % improvement compared to NBSC. This research provides an efficient approach for the advancement of materials tailored for next-generation energy conversion devices.