Pentlandite-MoS₂ as sulfur tolerant anode materials for solid oxide fuel cells

(Co, Ni)₉S₈ pentlandite was prepared via the hydrothermal method and applied with MoS₂ as the sulfur tolerant anode materials for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). XRD patterns showed that (Co, Ni)₉S₈ was converted from (Co, Ni)₃S₄ at temperature higher than 600 °C. The performance of the single cell with (Co, Ni)₉S₈ -MoS₂-YSZ (8% yttria stabilized zirconia) anode was 104.5 mWcm⁻² in 50 ppm H₂S-H₂ at 850 °C, which was significantly higher than that of 52.8 mWcm⁻² in pure H₂. The sulfur tolerance of the anode was attributed to the mitigation of the sulfur occupation and promotion of the H₂ adsorption and dissociation by the (Co, Ni)₉S₈ -MoS₂ materials. The cell performance was maintained relatively stable during a preliminary test of 110 min in H₂S-containing atmosphere, indicating (Co, Ni)₉S₈-MoS₂ as promising sulfur-tolerant anode materials for SOFC applications.