Fabrication and Performance Evaluation of Six-Cell Two-Dimensional Configuration Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Stack Based on Planar 6 × 6 cm Anode-Supported Cells

Abstract

Using energy efficiently and reducing environmental pollution caused by energy consumption are becoming increasingly important. In this study, a two-dimensional (2D) solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack configuration was designed to be operated with six cells. This design could potentially be applied in thermal power plants in developing countries where waste heat is more plentiful; the 2D configuration six-cell stack could be an elementary module, and such modules could be more easily placed in contact with hot walls where waste heat recovery is required. In this report, the design, fabrication, and performance evaluation of the stack are described. The stack, with six 6 × 6 cm2 cells (5 × 5 cm2 effective area), is connected in series and operates successfully. The results show that the maximum potential of the six-cell stack is around 5.5 V (0.92 V per unit cell) at 700 °C. The maximum output power of the stack is 6.0 W at 700 °C, with humidified hydrogen (with 3% H2O) as the fuel. The results show that the six-cell 2D configuration SOFC stack can be innovatively constructed.