Chromium
(Cr) evaporation of ferritic stainless steel (FSS) interconnects
is considered to be the main reason for severe deterioration of solid
oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). To suppress the influence of Cr evaporation,
the development of a protective coating material on the FSS interconnects
has been proved to be an effective way. Herein, we prepare a Co-containing
protective coating via a facile pack cementation technique in different
atmospheres on an AISI 430 FSS interconnect. The obtained coating
is valid for enhancing the oxidation resistance and electrical performance
of the FSS interconnect. After the isothermal oxidation test, the
weight gain of the coated sample in Ar (0.415 mg/cm2) is
smaller than that of uncoated (1.613 mg/cm2) and coated
samples in air (0.498 mg/cm2). In addition, after the area
specific resistance (ASR) test, the coated sample (73.68 mΩ
cm2) in Ar has the lowest ASR compared with the uncoated
(236.88 mΩ cm2) and coated samples in air (96.32
mΩ cm2). These results indicate that the formation
of the CoFe2O4 spinel layer heightens oxidation
resistance and electrical properties through preventing the outward
diffusion of Cr3+ and inward diffusion of O2–. This work verifies that the Co-containing protective coating prepared
in Ar is a promising coating material for SOFC applications.