Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Von L Richards

Subhash C Singhal

Prabhakar Singh

George R Folser

Theodore R Vasilow

Lewis J Kuo

Charles J Spengler

Shailesh D Vora

Uday B Pal

The invention comprises of an electrically conducting doped or admixed cerium oxide composition with niobium oxide and/or tantalum oxide for electrochemical devices, characterized by the general formula:

Protective interlayer for high temperature solid electrolyte

A dense, substantially gas-tight, electrically conductive interconnection layer is formed on an air electrode structure of an electrochemical cell by (A) providing an electrode surface; (B) forming on a selected portion of the electrode surface, a layer of doped LaCrO.sub.3 particles doped with an element selected from Ca, Sr, Ba, Mg, Co, Ni, Al and mixtures thereof by plasma spraying doped LaCrO.sub.3 powder, preferably compensated with chromium as Cr.sub.2 O.sub.3 and/or dopant element, preferably by plasma arc spraying; and, (C) heating the doped and compensated LaCrO.sub.3 layer to about 1100.degree. C. to 1300.degree. C. to provide a dense, substantially gas-tight, substantially hydration-free, electrically conductive interconnection material bonded to the electrode surface. A solid electrolyte layer can be applied to the unselected portion of the air electrode, and a fuel electrode can be applied to the solid electrolyte, to provide an electrochemical cell.

Method of forming a plasma sprayed interconnection layer on an electrode

A highly sinterable powder consisting essentially of LaCrO.sub.3, containing from 5 weight % to 20 weight % of a chromite of dopant Ca, Sr, Co, Ba, or Mg and a coating of a chromate of dopant Ca, Sr, Co, Ba, or Mg; is made by (1) forming a solution of La, Cr, and dopant; (2) heating their solutions; (3) forming a combined solution having a desired ratio of La, Cr, and dopant and heating to reduce solvent; (4) forming a foamed mass under vacuum; (5) burning off organic components and forming a charred material; (6) grinding the charred material; (7) heating the char at from 590.degree. C. to 950 C. in inert gas containing up to 50,000 ppm O.sub.2 to provide high specific surface area particles; (8) adding that material to a mixture of a nitrate of Cr and dopant to form a slurry; (9) grinding the particles in the slurry; (10) freeze or spray drying the slurry to provide a coating of nitrates on the particles; and (11) heating the coated particles to convert the nitrate coating to a chromate coating and provide a highly sinterable material having a high specific surface area of over 7 m.sup.2 /g.

Method of making highly sinterable lanthanum chromite powder

A combustible polymer film, useful for application of an interconnection on an electrode is made by: (1) providing doped LaCro.sub.3 particles; (2) dispersing doped LaCrO.sub.3 particles in a solvent, to provide a dispersion; (3) screening the dispersion to provide particles in the range of from 30 micrometers to 80 micrometers; (4) admixing a fugitive polymer with the particles; (5) casting the dispersion to provide a film; (6) drying the film; and (7) stripping the film. The film can then be applied to a porous, preheated electrode top surface, and then electrochemical vapor depositing a dense skeletal LaCrO.sub.3 structure, between and around the doped LaCrO.sub.3 particles. Additional solid oxide electrolyte and fuel electrode layers can then be added to provide a fuel cell.

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Murrysville, PA, United States of America

Von L Richards