Gadolinia doped ceria/yttria stabilised zirconia electrolytes for solid oxide fuel cell applications

Solid oxide fuel cells are currently constructed using a yttria stabilised zirconia electrolyte membrane. However, zirconia has a number of disadvantages associated with its use, such as the high operational temperatures required for it to exhibit acceptable levels of ionic conductivity. Alternative ceramics such as doped cerium oxide show promise as electrolytes capable of operating at reduced temperatures, but introduce additional problems such as electronic conduction and inferior mechanical properties. This paper describes the manufacture and characterisation of a number of prototype electrolytes consisting of a mixture of yttria stabilised zirconia and gadolinium doped ceria. Traditional ceramic processing techniques were used to produce the samples, which were then examined using dilatometry, impedance spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. Results show a lowering of the ionic conductivity of zirconia with the addition of doped ceria. X-ray diffraction patterns obtained from the samples suggested that this effect could be attributed to the formation of a solid solution of ceria in zirconia.