Durability enhancement of novel monolithic metal supported Solid Oxide Fuel Cells through processing optimizations

In the last decades, Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) have received a lot of attention due to their ability to efficiently convert hydrogen and other fuels to electricity and heat. Cells with different designs (planar, tubular, anode-, electrolyte-, metal-supported) have been intensively studied in terms of performance, costs and lifetime. Still, technical challenges such as limited thermal cycling stability and cost-efficient paths to up-scaling need to be solved to make the SOFC technology more commercially attractive. This study presents the design, fabrication and testing of a novel monolithic metal-supported SOFC with the aim to achieve thermal cycling robustness and a high volumetric power density using cost-competitive and scalable manufacturing methods. The study presents preliminary electrochemical performances of the cells and key parameters of the manufacturing process that were optimized to increase the stability/durability of the monolith by a factor of 100.