Sintering of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Materials

Abstract

The synthesis of multilayer membranes for solid oxide fuel cells by means of co-firing requires choice of compatible materials as well as a precise balance between densification rates of the various layers throughout the densification process. One attractive practical objective is the formation of dense electrolyte films on invariant, preformed electrode substrates, such as porous electrodes of either ceramic or metal conductors. The formation of dense 10-20 micrometer thick Ceria-based membranes on invariant substrates has been achieved by adjusting of the film sintering properties trough selection of particle size, initial density, and novel sintering additives. The accompanying theory pertaining to constrained sintering is examined, to determine the conditions under which fully dense electrolyte layers can be produced on invariant or minimally variant substrates.