Development of Stabilized $NiO$ Cathodes for Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell

The stabilized $NiO$ cathodes were fabricated by $Li‐Co‐O$ coated Ni powder which was synthesized by hydrothermal treatment in $4-6M$$LiOH∙H2O$⁠. The morphology of $Li‐Co‐O$ coating was characterized by spectroscopic techniques to investigate the optimal synthesis conditions such as temperature, reaction time, and reactant molarity. $Li‐Co‐O$ coating was consisted of $LiCoO2$⁠, $Co(OH)2$⁠, and $CoOOH$⁠, and the amount of $LiCoO2$ was increased with increasing time and molarity of $LiOH∙H2O$⁠. The mechanical properties of the stabilized $NiO$ cathodes were also measured to evaluate the stability in molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) applications. The bending strength of the stabilized cathode was significantly improved compared to the typical $NiO$ cathode. The pores of the stabilized cathode showed typical bimodal distribution in size due to the micropores developed by coated materials, and the overall porosity was higher than 75% under optimal synthesis conditions, which is also promising for MCFC applications.