The effect of Cr deposition and poisoning on the electrochemical activity and microstructure of La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3-delta (LSCF) electrodes is investigated in detail under open circuit conditions at 900 degrees C, 800 degrees C and 700 degrees C in the presence of a Fe-Cr alloy interconnect. The electrochemical performance of LSCF electrodes for the O-2 reduction reaction (ORR) under solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) mode and for the O-2 evolution reaction (OER) under solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) mode is seriously degraded after exposure to Cr-containing air at open circuit voltage. SEM, XRD and Raman spectroscopy analyses reveal the formation of SrCrO4 phase and the deposition of a similar to 1 mu m thick Cr deposit layer on the outer surface of LSCF electrodes after exposure to Fe-Cr alloy interconnect at 900 degrees C for 20 h under open circuit conditions, greatly limiting the oxygen exchange and diffusion related processes. However, the magnitude of Cr deposition decreases significantly with the decrease in temperature. The results also confirm that the mechanism of Cr deposition on LSCF electrodes is a chemical process in nature that is initiated most likely by the nucleation reaction between surface segregated SrOx and gaseous Cr species. (c) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.