Potential of pyrochlore structure materials in solid oxide fuel cell applications

Pyrochlore structure material (A(2)B(2)O(7)) has gained interest in diverse applications like catalysis, nuclear waste encapsulation, sensors, and various electronic devices due to the unique crystal structure, electrical property, and thermal stability. This review deals with the ionic/electronic conductivity of numerous pyrochlore structure materials (titanates, zirconates, hafnates, stannates, niobates, ruthenates, and tantalite based pyrochlore) as electrolyte and electrode materials for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The impact of cation radius ratio (r(A)/r(B)) on the lattice constant and oxygen 'x' parameter of different pyrochlore structure materials obtained by various synthesis methods are reported. Higher ionic conductivity is essential for better ion transport in an electrolyte, and mixed ionic and electronic conductivity in electrode is essential for attaining higher efficiency in a typical SOFC. GdxTi2O7-delta, Gd2-xCaxTi2O7-delta, Nd2-yGdyZr2O7, Y2Zr2O7, Y2Zr2-xMnxO7-delta, SmDy1-xMgxZr2O7-x/2, Gd2-xCaxTi2O7-delta pyrochlore are reported as electrolytes for fuel cell applications. Some pyrochlore material (La2-xCaxZr2O7, Sm2-xMxTi2O7 (M = Mg, Co, and Ni) pyrochlore) shows protonic conductivity at lower temperatures and ionic conductivity at higher temperature condition. Also, the mixed ionic-electronic conductivity behavior is reported in electrode materials for SOFC such as R2MnTiO7 (R = Er and Y), R2MnRuO7 (R = Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, and Y), R2Ru2O7 (R = Bi, Pb and Y), Y2-xPrxRu2O7, Ni-(Gd0.9Ca0.1)(2)Ti2O7-delta, (Gd0.9Ca0.1)(2)Ti2O7-delta, Gd-2(Ti0.8Ru0.2)(2)O7-delta, (Sm0.9Ca0.1)(2)Ti2O7-delta and (Y0.9Ca0.1)(2)Ti2O7-delta pyrochlore. The detailed study of the electronic behavior of these pyrochlore system confirms the necessity of defect structure with high oxygen mobility, lower activation energy, ionic radii ratio criterion should satisfy, and possess notable ion-ion interaction. Ionic conductivity in pyrochlore is increased by enhancing the oxygen migration through 48f-48f site with the formation of oxygen vacancy. Vacancy formation can be achieved by adding a suitable dopant that creates oxygen vacancy by charge compensation mechanism or as anion Frenkel defects. Similarly, the electrical conductivity is improved while adding suitable dopant (Ce, Pr, Ru, etc.) due to disordered structure and anti-Frenkel defect formation which leads to oxygen vacancy formation and thus improves conductivity.

Automated summary

Pyrochlore structure materials have unique crystal structure, electrical properties, and thermal stability, making them widely applicable in catalysis, nuclear waste encapsulation, sensors, and electronic devices. The ionic/electronic conductivity of these materials is crucial for their performance in solid oxide fuel cells, where factors like cation radius ratio, oxygen migration, vacancy formation, and dopant addition play significant roles in enhancing the conductivity. Research has shown that controlling these factors can improve the ion and electron transport properties of pyrochlore materials, ultimately leading to better performance in various applications.