Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry

Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry, Ural Branch RAS 620219 Ekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Region, Russia... 

Fundamental research in the field of SOFCs started in Russia in the end of 1950s at the Institute of Electrochemistry in Sverdlovsk (now the Institute of High Temperature Electrochemistry, IHTE, Ekaterinburg). From the very outset, the works included study of solid oxide electrolytes (SOEs), electrode materials and electrode kinetics, other components of SOFC interconnects, seals, etc. 

Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry of Russian Academy of Science, Ekatherineburg 620016, Rissia... 

Shkerin S.N. Izv. Akad. Nauk. Ser. Fiz. 2002. V. 66. p. 890. in Russian. Suzuki Y., Kohzaki T. H Solid State Ionics. 1993. V.59. P. 307. van HasselB.A., Burggraaf A.J. H Solid State Ionics.1992. V.57.P.193. Kurumchin E.Kh. Doctoral Thesis. Ekaterinburg, Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry, Ural Branch RAS. 1997. in Russian. Salmon H., Chaumont J., Dolin C., Monty C. H Ceramic transactions. 

In about 1958-1960, a large program of studies into these fuel cells was conducted at the University of Amsterdam (Netherlands) by Broers and Ketelaar (Broers and Ketelaar, 1961). A little later, such studies were also initiated at the Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry in Yekaterinburg (Russia) (Stepanov, 1972-1974). 

Right after the work of Davtyan that we referred to earlier, vigorous studies into solid-oxide fuel cells (SOFC) with electrolytes on the basis of zirconium dioxide doped with oxides of yttrium and other metals were started in many places and particularly at the Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry already mentioned (Palguyev and Volchenkova, 1958 Chebotin et al., 1971). The working temperature in these cells was in the range of 8(X)-1000 C. 

Palgnyev SF, Volchenkova ZS. Proceedings of Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry, No. 2 1958. p. 183. 

N.M. BARBIN, V.N. NECRASOV, D.I. TERENTIEV, A.P. PEKAR Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry, Ural Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 20 Kovalevskaya Str., 620219 Ekaterinburg GSP-146, Russia... 

Institute of High Temperature Electrochemistry of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences,... 

Work on MCFCs was resumed in the 1960s in many places for example, in the Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry in Ekaterinburg, Russia (Stepanov, 1972-1974) and in the Institute of Gas Technology in Chicago (Baker et al., 1980). A large contribution to this field was made by Broers and Ketelaar (1961) in Amsterdam. 

In 1957, after prompting by Frumkin, the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences adopted a resolution to reorganize the Institute of High Temperature Electrochemistry of the AS USSR. Karpachev became its Director from 1963 to 1977 and worked in close cooperation with Fmmkin. Among eminent Ural electrochemists, the name of Oleg Alekseyevich Esin (7 September 1904-13 February 1979) should also be mentioned (Photo 4.26). 

Further, the first electrochemical devices based on oxide ion-conducting solid electrolytes, i.e., solid oxide fuel cells, water vapor electrolyzers, and oxygen concentrators, were also developed in the Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry. In 1978 the Laboratory of Physical and Chemical Properties of Solid Electrolytes has been renamed to the Solid Electrolytes Laboratory. Different cation-conductive solid electrolytes were investigated in the laboratory. Oxide semiconductor materials with fast ion and electron transport have been studied for different electrode applications in high-temperature electrochemical devices and MHD generators. 

In the late 1980s the situation of the Soviet science became worse and worse because of the decreasing funding in all sectors of the Soviet economy. In 1991, the Academy of Sciences of the USSR was divided into national academies of science. The biggest national academy became the Russian Academy of Sciences. That time the institute obtained its present name Institute of High-Temperature Electrochemistry of Ural Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IHTE UD RAS). 

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