Performance of Cobalt‐free La 0.6 Sr 0.4 Fe 0.9 Ni 0.1 O 3–δ Cathode Material for Intermediate Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

A series of cobalt‐free perovskite‐type cathode materials La 0.6 Sr 0.4 Fe 1– x Ni x O 3–δ (0 ≤  x  ≤ 0.15) for intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT‐SOFCs) are prepared by a citric‐nitrate process. The conductivities of the cathode materials are measured as functions of temperature (300–800 °C) in air by AC impedance method, and the La 0.6 Sr 0.4 Fe 0.9 Ni 0.1 O 3–δ (LSFN10) has the highest conductivity to be 160 S cm –1 at 400 °C. A single IT‐SOFC based on LSFN10 cathode, BaZr 0.1 Ce 0.7 Y 0.2 O 3–δ electrolyte membrane and Ni–BaZr 0.1 Ce 0.7 Y 0.2 O 3–δ anode substrate was fabricated by a simple spin‐coating process, and the performances of the cell using hydrogen as fuel and air as the oxidant were researched by electrochemical methods at 600–700 °C. The maximum power densities of the cell are 405 mW cm –2 at 700 °C, 238 mW cm –2 at 650 °C, and 140 mW cm –2 at 600 °C, respectively. The results indicate that the LSFN10 is a promising cathode material for proton conducting IT‐SOFCs.