New Family of Electrochemical Cells for NOx Decomposition with Multi Layer Electro-Catalytic Electrode

A new family of electrochemical cells for NO decomposition in the presence of 10% oxygen has been designed and investigated. A strong correlation between the process of NO decomposition and the microstructure and composition of the electro-catalytic electrode was observed. The ambipolar transport properties of the composite electro-catalytic electrode and the electrochemical properties of an electrochemical cell for NO decomposition were investigated and correlated with the electrode compositions and external voltage applied to the cell. For electrochemical cells with NiO-YSZ composite electro-catalytic electrodes, a sharp transition in the efficiency of NO decomposition has been observed when the volume content of NiO in the NiO-YSZ is slightly greater then 1/3. It was shown that the highest efficiency of NO decomposition could be reached when the ambipolar conductivity of the electrode has a maximum value. A mechanism of NO decomposition by this new type of the electrochemical cell with composite electro-catalytic electrode was proposed and investigated.