Exsolution in Ni-doped lanthanum strontium titanate: a perovskite-based material for anode application in ammonia-fed Solid Oxide Fuel Cell

Hydrogen represents the most conventional fuel to feed Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) for green energy production. However, hydrogen has some drawbacks which prevent the large-scale implementation. Research identified ammonia as promising hydrogen vector. Hereby, highly dispersed Ni nanoparticle are deposited on La-doped strontium titanate by exsolution, greatly affecting the electrochemical performance. The exsolved Ni-doped lanthanum strontium titanate (La0·45Sr0·45Ti0·90Ni0.10-δO3 – LSTNOH) was largely characterized. XRD analysis detected 10 mol% of Ni doping has been successfully incorporated in to the perovskite structure and then released when exposed in reducing environment. SEM images show Ni nanoparticles highly dispersed on the surface. XPS confirms the presence of Ni on the surface after the exsolution and allows to exclude other detrimental diffusion towards the bulk. A LSTNOH derived composite based anode has been investigated through impedance spectroscopy using ammonia and hydrogen as fuel. It demonstrates best performances compared to the one obtained by Ni infiltration on LSTO (La0·45Sr0·45TiO3) composite scaffold. Polarization resistance, running on ammonia, decreases raising the temperature and the performances approach those in hydrogen.