Improving the Electrocatalytic Activity and Durability of the La_0.6Sr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O_3−δ Cathode by Surface Modification

Electrode materials with high activity and good stability are essential for commercialization of energy conversion systems such as solid oxide fuel cells or electrolysis cells at the intermediate temperature. Modifying the existing perovskite-based electrode surface to form a heterostructure has been widely applied for the rational design of novel electrodes with high performance. Despite many successful developments in enhancing electrode performance by surface modification, some controversial results are also reported in the literature and the mechanisms are still not well understood. In this work, the mechanism of how surface modification impacts the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity and stability of perovskite-based oxides was investigated. We took La_0.6Sr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O₃ (LSCF) as the thin-film model system and modified its surface with additive Pr_xCe_1–xO₂ layers of different thicknesses. We found a strong correlation between surface oxygen defects and the ORR activity of the heterostructure. By inducing higher oxygen vacancy concentration compared to bare LSCF, PrO₂ coating is proved to greatly facilitate the rate of oxygen dissociation, thus significantly enhancing the ORR activity. Because of low oxygen vacancy density introduced by Pr_0.2Ce_0.8O₂ and CeO₂ coating, on the one hand, it does not boost the rate of ORR but successfully suppresses surface Sr segregation, leading to an enhanced durability. Our findings demonstrate the vital role of surface oxygen defects and provide important insights for the rational design of high-performance electrode materials through surface defect engineering.