Selective in situ phase segregation enabling efficient and stable protonic ceramic fuel cell cathode performance

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dc.contributor.authorFeng, DHen_AU
dc.contributor.authorPeterson, VKen_AU
dc.contributor.authorZhu, Tianjiuen_AU
dc.contributor.authorLin, Ren_AU
dc.contributor.authorD'Angelo, AMen_AU
dc.contributor.authorAppadoo, DRTen_AU
dc.contributor.authorTian, XHen_AU
dc.contributor.authorDu, XYen_AU
dc.contributor.authorZhu, ZHen_AU
dc.contributor.authorLi, MRen_AU
dc.date.accessioned2025-10-27T02:24:22Zen_AU
dc.date.available2025-10-27T02:24:22Zen_AU
dc.date.issued2025-06-09en_AU
dc.date.statistics2025-10-27en_AU
dc.description.abstractEfficient and reliable protonic ceramic fuel cells (PCFCs) necessitate the development of active and durable cathode materials to accelerate the sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). The most promising PCFC cathode candidates are perovskite‐type structured oxides with mixed oxygen ion, proton, and hole conductivity. However, mixed conductivity often requires materials with alkaline earth elements and the inclusion of these elements in the cathode structure leads to severe degradation in the presence of even small trace amounts of CO2 in air. Herein, a new approach is presented to address this challenge by inducing selective in situ phase segregation to engineer the cathode surface and bulk separately. This selective phase segregation is achieved via targeted control of the size mismatch of cations in the perovskite‐type structure, enhancing charge transfer in the bulk while improving CO2 resistance at the surface. By co‐incorporating smaller Li+ and larger K+ into the model BaCo0.4Fe0.4Zr0.1Y0.1O3−δ cathode material, it is shown that Li+ segregates to the surface, protecting it from CO2 poisoning, while K+ remains in the bulk and accelerates proton transport. Consequently, this in situ restructured cathode can boost the PCFC power output by 30% and improve its CO2 tolerance fivefold in the presence of CO2 at 600 °C. © 2025 The Author(s). Small published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial Licenceen_AU
dc.description.sponsorshipThe authors acknowledged the facilities, as well as the scientific and technical assistance, of the Australian Microscopy & Microanalysis Research Facility at the Centre for Microscopy and Microanalysis at The University of Queensland. This work used the Queensland node of the NCRIS-enabled Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF). This research was undertaken on the PD (M19209, M20988, and PDR21517) and THz (M20095) beamline at the Australian Synchrotron, part of ANSTO. The authors also acknowledged the Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering, ANSTO and the Australian Government's National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy in supporting neutron powder diffraction through the ACNS proposal P16084. This work was financially supported by the Australian Research Council (ARC) discovery projects DP200101397 and DP250102334. D.F. acknowledged the financial support from the UQ Graduate School scholarship and ARC (FL180100029). M.L. acknowledged the financial support from ARC (DE230100637) and Australia Sunlight Group Pty Ltd (AUKRH00031). Open access publishing facilitated by The University of Melbourne, as part of the Wiley - The University of Melbourne agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians.en_AU
dc.format.mediumPrint-Electronicen_AU
dc.identifier.articlenumbere2411223en_AU
dc.identifier.citationFeng, D., Peterson, V. K., Zhu, T., Lin, R., D'Angelo, A. M., Appadoo, D., Tian, X., Du, X., Zhu, Z., & Li, M. (2025). Selective in situ phase segregation enabling efficient and stable protonic ceramic fuel cell cathode performance. Small, 21(31), 2411223. doi:10.1002/smll.202411223en_AU
dc.identifier.issn1613-6810en_AU
dc.identifier.issn1613-6829en_AU
dc.identifier.journaltitleSmallen_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1002/smll.202411223en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://apo.ansto.gov.au/handle/10238/16665en_AU
dc.languageEnglishen_AU
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.publisherWileyen_AU
dc.subjectIn-situ processingen_AU
dc.subjectCathodesen_AU
dc.subjectFuel cellsen_AU
dc.subjectOxygen ionsen_AU
dc.subjectCarbon dioxideen_AU
dc.subjectProton transporten_AU
dc.subjectPoisoningen_AU
dc.subjectIronen_AU
dc.subjectTemperature rangeen_AU
dc.subjectElectrolytesen_AU
dc.subjectWateren_AU
dc.subjectBariumen_AU
dc.titleSelective in situ phase segregation enabling efficient and stable protonic ceramic fuel cell cathode performanceen_AU
dc.typeJournal Articleen_AU
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