Investigation on the Microstructure, Oxidation and Electrical Behavior of Ti-coated Crofer 22APU Steel for SOFC Interconnect Applications

One of the most effective ways to improve oxidation resistance of interconnects used in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) is to apply a layer of conductive protective coating. In this study, Crofer 22APU ferritic steel was coated in a titanium- based powder mixture by pack cementation method. The powder composition for titanium coating was Ti 20 wt.%, NH4Cl 5 wt.% (activator) and Al2O3 75 wt.%. The optimum temperature and time to obtain the best coating quality in terms of adhesion and porosity were 800 °C and 7 hours, respectivly. The obtained titanized coating consisted of TiFe, TiFe2 and TiCr2 phases. The results of isothermal and cyclic oxidation tests carried out at 900 °C, showed that titanium-coated samples had better oxidation resistance than non-coated samples. Microstructural and phase studies of coated and oxidized samples were performed by scanning electron macroscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD). During oxidation process, the coating layer was converted into TiFe, TiFe2, TiFe2O5, TiO2 and TiCr2O4 phases. The coated specimens had lower weight gains relative to uncoated samples showing that coating effectively protects the substrate against oxidation. Moreover, coated samples had higher electrical resistance than uncoated ones.