La0.8Sr0.2MnO$_3$−$\delta$ (LSM)/8 mol% yttria-stabilized ZrO$_2$ (YSZ) (LSM/YSZ) composite cathodes with varying composition are studied for both polarization and ohmic resistance by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. It was found that total resistance and polarization resistance are lowest for the composite with 60 wt% of LSM (LSM60/YSZ40). However, the ohmic resistance was highest for the same composition and amounted to 60% of the total resistance value. Compositional dependence of resistances has been explained based on the variations of the triple phase boundaries and width of the O$_2$−ion migration path with the composition of the electrode. Based on the observed area specific ohmic resistance values for the composite cathodes, it is proposed to verify the advantages of LSM/YSZ over LSM cathode in anode-supported solidoxide fuel cell with thin electrolyte.

Nanosized ceria is an extremely versatile and commercially valuable material because of its industrially impor-tant applications. The present work describes the synthesis of ceria nanocubes by a simple hydrothermal method. The size of the synthesized ceria nanocubes are 8–20 nm. The formation of ceria phase has been corroborated by X-ray photoelec-tron spectroscopy and X-ray diffractometry. Selected area electron diffraction patterns obtained for the nanocubes are also precisely indexed to the cubic ceria phase. The synthesized ceria nanocubes exhibit a high surface area of 26 m² g⁻¹ and also high catalytic activity. The work also investigates the influence of ceria nanocubes on the corrosion resistance of sol–gel hybrid coatings in 3.5% NaCl solution on AA2024 substrates. The corrosion behaviour of the sol–gel coatings revealed that ceria nanocubes reinforce the barrier properties of the sol–gel coatings and confer longer active protection to the metallic substrate.