Prontonic ceramic membrane fuel cells with layered GdBaCO2O5+x cathode prepared by gel-casting and suspension spray

In order to develop a simple and cost-effective route to fabricate protonic ceramic membrane fuel cells (PCMFCs) with layered GdBaCo2O5+x (GBCO) cathode, a dense BaZr0.1Ce0.7Y0.7O3-delta (BZCY7) electrolyte was fabricated on a porous anode by gel-casting and suspension spray. The porous NiO-BaZr0.1Ce0.7Y0.2O3-delta (NiO-BZCY7) anode was directly prepared from metal oxide (NiO, BaCO3, ZrO2, CeO2 and Y2O3) by a simple gel-casting process. A suspension of BaZr0.1Ce0.7Y0.2O3-delta powders synthesized by gel-casting was then employed to deposit BaZr0.1Ce0.7Y0.2O3-delta (BZCY7) thin layer by pressurized spray process on NiO-BZCY7 anode. The bi-layer with 10 mu m dense BZCY7 electrolyte was obtained by co-sintering at 1400 degrees C for 5 h. With layered GBCO cathode synthesized by gel-casting on the bi-layer, single cells were assembled and tested with H, as fuel and the static air as oxidant. An open-circuit potential of 0.98 V, a maximum power density of 266 mWcm(-2), and a low polarization resistance of the electrodes of 0.16 Omega cm(2) was achieved at 700 degrees C. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.