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Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) have been gaining increased attention in the energy sector. Commonly, yttria-stabilized zirconia is widely employed as commercial electrolyte, however, resulted in drawbacks such as high-temperature operating and low conductivity which negatively affect the durability and efficiency. Thus there are many efforts to find high-ionic conductors. From the point of manufacturing, the major difficulty of LaGaO3-based electrolyte as a high-ionic conductor is its incompatibility with commercial Ni-based anodes during high-temperature processes as well as operating. Several interlayers have been introduced to prevent the reaction between LaGaO3-based electrolyte and Ni-based anode. In this study, we investigate the optimal thickness of the La-doped CeO2 (LDC) interlayer by the screen-printing method using La0.9Sr0.1Ga0.8Mg0.2O3-δ for the commercial electrolyte supported SOFCs. As a result, the superior power performance of 2.2 W·cm−2 at 1123 K is achieved through the optimized LDC thickness of 20 μm through not lab-scaled but commercial ceramic manufacturing processing.

Compression glass molding is a promising technique for mass production of near net-shaped, high-precision, and low-cost optical glass elements. However, the glass molding process causes the damage of glass and the mold during demolding because of the chemical or physical adhesion of the glass to the mold. To overcome this limitation, graphite molds are used owing to their good lubrication and easy machining. However, graphite materials show rapid oxidation at high temperatures in the presence of oxygen. Therefore, in this study, a thin SiC coating layer was deposited on the graphite mold using the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method to utilize the lubrication properties of graphite and the anti-oxidation properties of SiC. The specimen obtained using the low-temperature CVD method showed high carbon content and good lubrication properties than that obtained using the high-temperature CVD method.

The solid oxide membrane (SOM) process is an environmentally friendly and innovative technology that can produce valuable metals directly from their oxides. In the SOM process, a yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) tube is normally immersed the molten salt containing dissolved metal oxides and oxygen anions that move to the SOM tube where they are reduced without any emission. However, the YSZ phase transition and yttrium dissolution by the reaction with the flux reduce the SOM stability and lifetime. Here, we investigated the effect of powder characteristics on YSZ stability in the SOM electrolysis environment. Thus, powder with good formability such as high flowability and tap/untap density showed a 2% decrease in electrical conductivity, but a 17% decrease in low formability powders. The cause of the degradation is the penetration of salt ions into the lattice and the elution of yttrium ions, which results in a phase transition.

For the Fundamental studies on the phase stability of YSZ, we tried to approach the detailed influences of practical conditions through various hypotheses. The phase stability of cubic and tetragonal yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) was studied in the specific electrochemical conditions of current loading and molten salt flux. The degradation of electrochemical performance in the cubic phase occurred more easily than in the tetragonal phase because of yttrium elution in the lattice. The fully stabilized cubic phase showed high electrical performance as an oxide ion-conducting electrolyte, but phase decomposition occurred more easily under applied currents or chemical loading conditions than for the partially stabilized tetragonal phase. When YSZ reacted with a molten salt fluoride flux in solid oxide membrane (SOM) processing, which is used for direct metal reduction, and high-temperature electrolysis in the molten salt, the electrical conductivity of cubic YSZ was decreased by ~37%, while that of tetragonal YSZ showed no change. Our findings have important implications for the use of YSZ as an oxygen conductor in various electrochemical devices.

A molecular dynamics simulation was used to investigate the structural and transport properties of a (Ba0.5−xSrx)La0.5InO3−δ (x = 0, 0.1, 0.2) oxygen ion conductor. Previous studies reported that the ionic conductivity of Ba-doped LaInO3 decreases because Ba dopant forms a narrow oxygen path in the lattice, which could hinder the diffusion of oxygen ions. In this study, we reveal the mechanism to improve ionic conductivity by Ba and Sr co-doping on an La site in LaInO3 perovskite oxide. The results show that the ionic conductivity of (Ba0.5−xSrx)La0.5InO3−δ increases with an increasing number of Sr ions because oxygen diffusion paths which contain Sr ions have a larger critical radius than those containing Ba ions. The radial distribution function (RDF) calculations show that the peak heights in compositions including Sr ions were lower and broadened, meaning that the oxygen ions moved easily into other oxygen sites.

The oxygen ion conduction behavior of an orthorhombic perovskite oxide Ba-doped LaInO3 was evaluated by molecular dynamics simulation. Comparative calculations for cubic and the orthorhombic models show that the orthorhombic model was in better agreement with the experimental results with respect to both ionic conductivity and activation energy. The results of the radial distribution function for O-O pair provided and explanation for why the ionic conductivity of cubic perovskite is higher than that of orthorhombic perovskite. The orthorhombic model has a higher peak intensity of O-O pair than the cubic model, it means that the orthorhombic model has a smaller number of oxygen-vacancy pairs in the lattice structure. Consequently, the ionic conductivity of orthorhombic perovskite is lower than that of cubic perovskite due to less conduction path.

Oxide ion conduction in orthorhombic perovskite structured oxides, La0.9A0.1InO2.95 (A = Ca, Sr and Ba) is analyzed using molecular dynamics simulation. Factors influencing oxide ion conductivity of the compositions considered are analyzed using radial distribution function, bond energies between dopant and oxide ions, and the diffusion path. It is known that perovskite oxides with smaller ion size mismatch between host and dopant ions have higher electrical conductivities. However, exceptions exist, such as a La0.9A0.1InO2.95 (A = Ca, Sr and Ba) system, where high electrical conductivities occur with large ion size mismatches. Based on this study, a dopant with smaller ion than host ion results in the formation of strong ionic bonds with oxide ions, suggesting that the A-site dopant should be larger than the host ion for forming weaker O–A bonds. Consequently, the trade-off between ion size mismatch and O–A bond needs to be considered for enhancing oxide ion conductivity of perovskite oxides.

Molecular dynamics simulations are conducted to study oxide ion conduction in Ba-doped LaInO3, a type of cubic perovskite oxide. In a previous study, we reported that the Ba dopant forms oxygen vacancies and narrow bottlenecks that function as a barrier to the movement of oxide ions. In this further study, we analyze the effects of dopant distribution on the oxide ion conductivity in Ba-doped LaInO3. The results show that the ionic conductivity of Ba-doped LaInO3 is strongly dependent on the dopant distribution. The Ba-rich region plays a crucial role in decreasing the ionic conductivity. Consequently, a homogeneous dopant distribution without a Ba-rich region is estimated to improve the ionic conductivity of Ba-doped LaInO3.

A molecular dynamics simulation was used to investigate the structural and transport properties of a (Ba0.5&minus, xSrx)La0.5InO3&minus, &delta, (x = 0, 0.1, 0.2) oxygen ion conductor. Previous studies reported that the ionic conductivity of Ba-doped LaInO3 decreases because Ba dopant forms a narrow oxygen path in the lattice, which could hinder the diffusion of oxygen ions. In this study, we reveal the mechanism to improve ionic conductivity by Ba and Sr co-doping on an La site in LaInO3 perovskite oxide. The results show that the ionic conductivity of (Ba0.5&minus, increases with an increasing number of Sr ions because oxygen diffusion paths which contain Sr ions have a larger critical radius than those containing Ba ions. The radial distribution function (RDF) calculations show that the peak heights in compositions including Sr ions were lower and broadened, meaning that the oxygen ions moved easily into other oxygen sites.

A computational study employing classical molecular dynamics techniques was employed to explore the diffusion of oxide ions in Ba-doped LaInO 3 , a cubic perovskite oxide. The Ba dopant in the LaInO 3 forms oxygen vacancies that function as charge carriers via an oxygen diffusion mechanism. Previous experimental studies reported that the ionic conductivity of Ba-doped LaInO 3 decreases with increasing numbers of oxygen vacancies, which was not fully understood through experimental approaches. Hence, this study explored the diffusion pathway for individual oxygen vacancies through molecular dynamics simulation. Based on the findings of this study, the Ba dopant appears to form narrow bottlenecks that function as a barrier to the movement of oxide ions. We concluded that the oxide ion conductivity of Ba-doped LaInO 3 is affected by the local ionic distribution of the Ba dopant.

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