Performance of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells on H2, NH3 and Hydrocarbon Fuels

The different gases such as H2, CH4, C3H8, NH3 or simulated underground coal gasification (UCG) gas can be used as fuel in SOFC. Basis on the thermochemical calculations, the performances of ceria-based electrolyte anode-supported cells operated on the five fuels were measured. As a result, for C3H8 fuel, the measured OCV decreased rapidly at lower temperatures, indicating sluggish reaction kinetics at the anode. However, the synergy between slow anode reaction kinetics and fast migration of oxide ions to the anode suppresses carbon deposition at low operating temperatures, which leads to better cell durability. Overall, the UCG gas fed cell exhibited much increased stability than any other hydrocarbons, whcih demonstrates that UCG gas is a promising fuel for utilization in SOFCs.