Development of proton conducting fuel cells using nickel metal support

This research reports the fabrication of a metal supported fuel cell based on the well-known proton conducting electrolyte (PCE) BaZr0.1Ce0.7Y0.1Yb0.1O3-δ (BZCYYb) material. The impact of the addition of YSZ on the anode microstructure is also described. This solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) consists of Ni:yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) support (with different weight ratios of Ni:YSZ), Ni-BZCYYb anode functional layer (AFL), BZCYYb electrolyte and LSCF-BZCYYb cathode. The results show that addition of only 10 wt% YSZ to the support improves the microstructure of the cell by preventing severe Ni grain growth inside the support, and providing more accessible triple phase boundaries (TPBs) at the contact surface of the support/AFL and better distribution of the fuel gas to the accessible TPBs. As a result of microstructural improvement, polarization resistance of the cells with 10 wt% YSZ decreases compared with the cell having pure Ni metal. The cell containing YSZ in the support shows 67 h of stable operation under potentiostatic SOFC condition without any degradation. The current metal supported tubular fuel cell shows promising electrochemical and microstructural features which has the possibility to replace the conventional (Ni-PCE) or even Ni-YSZ anode supports. [Display omitted] •First Ni supported tubular SOFC with proton conducting electrolyte is developed.•Severe Ni grain growth takes place inside the metal support with 100 wt% Ni.•Addition of 10 wt% YSZ to the metal support prevents serious Ni grain growth.•Microstructure optimization increases the stability and performance of the cell.