Effect of Y/Mg Ion Ratio and Phase Assemble on Ionic Conductivity of ZrO2 Solid Electrolyte Ceramics
Abstract The phase composition design principle is introduced to obtain a balanced properties of ionic conductivity and thermo-tolerant for zirconia solid electrolyte used in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The zirconia ceramic solid electrolytes were fabricated by two-step sintering. With increasing Y/Mg ionic ratio from 1.78:1 to 1.88:1, the content of monoclinic phase was not fluctuated widely. The ionic conductivity, including the total electrical resistance; grain electrical resistance and grain boundary electrical resistance at 1223K, was gradually declining with increasing of Y/Mg ionic ratio. Furthermore, the enrichment of Mg ion in grain boundary acts as a disincentive to grain boundary ionic conductivity. In addition, the maximum ionic conductivity at high temperature in this study reaches to 0.143 Scm-1 with increase of the Y/Mg ion ratio.