The ionic dynamics simulation of an intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell electrolyte were considered. The example electrolyte was a yttria-doped ceria which was proved experimentally to have better performance than the traditional yttria-stabilized zirconia in the intermediate-temperature operation range (below 1073K).

The molecular dynamics technique was used to analyze the O-ion transportation from a nanoscale point of view. The simulation revealed that the O vacancy tended to be constrained near the Y3+ ions in the crystalline lattice. The influence of different operation temperatures and various Y2O3 concentrations upon the ionic conductivity was studied. The results showed that 10.1mol% of Y2O3 doping tended to have the optimum ionic conductivity, while the system temperature tended to increase the ionic conductivity proportionally. The simulation was compared with published experimental data and exhibited reasonable agreement; in both trend and order of magnitude.

Ionic Dynamics of an Intermediate-Temperature Yttria-Doped-Ceria Electrolyte. C.H.Cheng, S.F.Lee, C.W.Hong: Journal of the Electrochemical Society, 2007, 154[10], E158-63