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Interface-driven boost in the performance and stability of protonic ceramic electrochemical cells

Yoo, Hyun Sik, Lee, Jongseo, Kim, Soyeon, Kim, Joon Gyu, Bang, Sehee, Jung, Yuhan, Kim, Donguk, Wen, Yue, Bae, Min Hyung, Seo, Bong Hyun, Suk, Ji Won, Lee, Wonyoung·2026·Nature Communications
DOI 10.1038/s41467-026-77561-6
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Abstract

Interfacial resistance remains a key challenge in developing high-performance and durable protonic ceramic electrochemical cells (PCECs), especially at low temperatures. Here, we present a systematic interface engineering strategy that quantitatively correlates interfacial contact coverage with electrochemical performance. A thin and dense PrBa 0.5 Sr 0.5 Co 1.5 Fe 0.5 O 5+δ interlayer is fabricated via low-cost and scalable precursor-based electrostatic spray deposition on a BaZr 0.4 Ce 0.4 Y 0.1 Yb 0.1 O 3-δ electrolyte, achieving a nearly complete contact coverage of 92.6 ± 0.6%. Equivalent circuit-based impedance modeling confirms that the improved contact coverage reduced both the interfacial ohmic and polarization resistances. The interface-engineered PCEC achieves a peak power density of 1.01 W/cm 2 in fuel cell mode and a current density of 1.15 A/cm 2 at 1.3 V in electrolysis mode at 500 °C. It also demonstrates improved interfacial mechanical integrity, preventing delamination under harsh thermal cycling, long-term operational stability, and fuel flexibility with direct ammonia and methane.

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Metadata

Authors
Yoo, H. S., Lee, J., Kim, S., Kim, J. G., Bang, S., Jung, Y., Kim, D., Wen, Y., Bae, M. H., Seo, B. H., Suk, J. W., & Lee, W.
Venue
Nature Communications
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2026-09-17
Volume
17
Issue
1
ISSN
2041-1723
DOI
10.1038/s41467-026-77561-6
Cited by
0
Language
en
Licence
Funders
  • National Research Foundation of Korea (2022R1A2C3012372, RS-2024-00448287, RS-2026-25501632)
  • Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KK2513-30)

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Interface-driven boost in the performance and stability of protonic ceramic electrochemical cells. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1038/s41467-026-77561-6
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Yoo, H. S., Lee, J., Kim, S., Kim, J. G., Bang, S., Jung, Y., Kim, D., Wen, Y., Bae, M. H., Seo, B. H., Suk, J. W., & Lee, W. (2026). Interface-driven boost in the performance and stability of protonic ceramic electrochemical cells. Nature Communications. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-77561-6

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