Fabrication and Performance of Cone-Shaped Segmented-In-Series Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

A new design of segmented-in-series solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) is presented in this paper. The small cone-shaped anode tubes were fabricated by slip casting and the yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) electrolyte membranes were deposited onto the anode tubes by dip coating. After sintering at 1400 degrees C for 4 h, a dense and crack-free YSZ membrane with a thickness of 20 mu m was successfully obtained. The single cell, using moist hydrogen as a fuel and ambient air as an oxidant, provides maximum power densities of 1.15, 0.8, 0.47, 0.26, 0.14, and 0.07 W/cm(2) at 850 degrees C, 800 degrees C, 750 degrees C, 700 degrees C, 650 degrees C, and 600 degrees C, respectively.