Microstructure-based modeling of inner oxygen pressure in solid oxide electrolysis cells: Analysis of electrode delamination and mitigation

Xue, Fei [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000329230283); Lei, Yinkai [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000202001491); Cheng, Tian-Le [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000340052924); Yang, Tao [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Morgantown, WV (United States)]; Epting, William K. [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States)]; Abernathy, Harry [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States)]; Wen, You-Hai [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000241632616)

doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2025.236199

DOE OSTI · 2513475

Microstructure-based modeling of inner oxygen pressure in solid oxide electrolysis cells: Analysis of electrode delamination and mitigation

Xue, Fei [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000329230283)·Lei, Yinkai [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000202001491)·Cheng, Tian-Le [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000340052924)·Yang, Tao [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Morgantown, WV (United States)]·Epting, William K. [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States)]·Abernathy, Harry [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States)]·Wen, You-Hai [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000241632616)

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Abstract

One major degradation mechanism during long-term operation of solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) is delamination of oxygen electrodes (OEs). The driving force for the electrode delamination could be the generated high inner oxygen pressure near the electrode-electrolyte interface during operation. However, the effects of transport properties and electrode thickness on the inner oxygen partial pressure are not well understood. Here a microstructure-based electrochemical model, which includes the conduction of electrons and oxygen ions coupled with Butler-Volmer-type chemical reactions at triple-phase-boundaries (TPBs), is employed to investigate the oxygen pressure in lanthanum strontium manganate (LSM)-based SOECs. The model is applied to both two-dimensional (2D) prototype microstructures and three-dimensional (3D) realistic microstructures, and the oxygen pressure is analyzed as a function of transport properties and electrode thickness under both potentiostatic and galvanostatic operations. The simulation results suggest strategies to suppress electrode delamination. The simulation results are compared to an analytical solution, and the discrepancies are attributed to the Butler-Volmer-type kinetics included in the microstructure-based model.

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Xue, Fei [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000329230283), Lei, Yinkai [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000202001491), Cheng, Tian-Le [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000340052924), Yang, Tao [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States); NETL Support Contractor, Morgantown, WV (United States)], Epting, William K. [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States)], Abernathy, Harry [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States)], Wen, You-Hai [National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Albany, OR (United States)] (ORCID:0000000241632616). 2025-01-15. Microstructure-based modeling of inner oxygen pressure in solid oxide electrolysis cells: Analysis of electrode delamination and mitigation. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2025.236199

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