Investigation of La0.6Sr0.4Co1-xNixO3-δ (x=0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8) catalysts on solid oxide fuel cells anode for biogas dry reforming

Abstract

The introduction of catalyst on anode of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) has been an effective way to alleviate the carbon deposition when utilizing biogas as the fuel. A series of La0.6Sr0.4Co1-xNixO3-δ (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8) oxides are synthesized by sol-gel method and used as catalysts precursors for biogas dry reforming. The phase structure of La0.6Sr0.4Co1-xNixO3-δ oxides before and after reduction are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The texture properties, carbon deposition, CH4 and CO2 conversion rate of La0.6Sr0.4Co1-xNixO3-δ catalysts are evaluated and compared. The peak power density of 739 mW cm−2 is obtained by a commercial SOFC with La0.6Sr0.4Co0.4Ni0.6O3-δ catalyst at 850 °C when using a mixture of CH4: CO2 = 2:1 as fuel. This shows a great improvement from the cell without catalyst for internal dry reforming, which is attributed to the formation of NiCo alloy active species after reduction in H2 atmosphere. The results indicate the benefits of inhibiting the carbon deposition on Ni-based anode through introducing the La0.6Sr0.4Co0.4Ni0.6O3-δ catalyst precursor. Additionally, the dry reforming technology will also help to convert part of the exhaust heat into chemical energy and improve the efficiency of SOFC system with biogas fuel.