UC San Diego

In order to improve the performance of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC), both micro-scaled continuous linear pore (CLP) and nano-sized interparticle pore structures were created inside of the NiO-YSZ anode by thermal decomposition of unidirectional carbon fibers in green body during sintering under air atmosphere. A comprehensive analysis of the prepared sample was performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) mapping, x-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) to explain how the CLP structure forms during sintering. The CLP structure prepared by this low-cost sacrificial templating method is characterized by its controllable uniform size in micro scale and a tortuosity value of 1.003 (coefficient of variation, CV: 0.59). Further discussion proposes that the optimized combination of the micro-scaled CLP and the nano-sized interparticle pore structures in an anode would be an ideal candidate to maximize the performance of SOFC by maximizing active triple phase boundary sites, minimizing Knudsen diffusion, and improving gas transports.