High performance fuel electrode for a solid oxide electrochemical cell

A high performance anode (fuel electrode) for use in a solid oxide electrochemical cell is obtained by a process comprising the steps of (a) providing a suitably doped, stabilized zirconium oxide electrolyte, such as YSZ,ScYSZ, with an anode side having a coating of electronically conductive perovskite oxides selected from the group consisting of niobium-doped strontium titanate, vanadium-doped strontium titanate, tantalum-doped strontium titanate and mixtures thereof, thereby obtaining a porous anode backbone, (b) sintering the coated electrolyte at a high temperature, such as 1200 DEG C in a reducing atmosphere, for a sufficient period of time, (c) effecting a precursor infiltration of a mixed catalyst into the backbone, said catalyst comprising a combination of noble metals Pd or Pt or Pd or Ru and Ni with rare earth metals, such as Ce or Gd, said infiltration consisting of (1); infiltration of Pd, Ru and CGO containing chloride/nitrate precursors and (2) infiltration of Ni and CGO containing nitrate precursors, and (d) subjecting the resulting structure of step (c) to heat treatments, including heat treatments in several steps with infiltration