Electrophoretic deposition of YSZ particles on non-conducting porous NiO-YSZ substrates for solid oxide fuel cell applications

This paper reports a method of performing electrophoretic deposition (EPD) on non-conducting substrates overcoming the requirement of a conducting substrate through the use of porous substrates. The conductivity of the substrate is therefore no longer a limiting factor in the application of EPD. This method is applicable to the fabrication of thick or thin layers of ceramic or metal for various applications. As an example, thin and dense yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) layers have been deposited on a non-conducting NiO-YSZ substrate by EPD from a non-aqueous suspension. A solid oxide fuel cell constructed on these sintered bilayers exhibited power densities of 384 and 611 mW/cm(2) at 750 degrees and 850 degrees C, respectively.