Peculiar Properties of the La(0.25)Ba(0.25)Sr(0.5)Co(0.8)Fe(0.2)O(3−δ) Perovskite as Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalyst

The electrochemical reduction of molecular oxygen is a fundamental process in Solid Oxide Fuel Cells and requires high efficiency cathode materials. Two La(0.25)Ba(0.25)Sr(0.5)Co(0.8)Fe(0.2)O(3−δ)-based perovskite compounds were prepared by solution combustion synthesis, and characterized for their structural, microstructural, surface, redox and electrochemical properties as potential cathodes in comparison with Ba(0.5)Sr(0.5)Co(0.8)Fe(0.2)O(3−δ) and La(0.5)Sr(0.5)Co(0.8)Fe(0.2)O(3−δ) perovskites. Results highlighted that calcination at 900 °C led to a “bi-perovskite heterostructure”, where two different perovskite structures coexist, whereas at higher calcination temperatures a single-phase perovskite was formed. The results showed the effectiveness of the preparation procedures in co-doping the A-site of perovskites with barium and lanthanum as a strategy to optimize the cathode’s properties. The formation of nanometric heterostructure co-doped in the A-site evidenced an improvement in oxygen vacancies’ availability and in the redox properties, which promoted both processes: oxygen adsorption and oxygen ions drift, through the cathode material, to the electrolyte. A reduction in the total resistance was observed in the case of heterostructured material.