Fabrication and characterization of Intermediate-Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (IT-SOFC) single cell using Indonesia’s resources

Abstract

Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) is one of the promising developments in the fuel cell system. SOFC can be applied to micro-scale combined heat and power generation (micro CHP) as a power plant in housing. Recently, intermediate-temperature SOFC (500-700°C) is being widely developed since cheaper than the conventional SOFC (~1000°C). Intermediate-temperature and conventional SOFC are less developed in Indonesia due to expensive electrode and electrolyte materials, such as Yttria and Lanthanum, which are not available in Indonesia. This study aims to develop a novel disk-shaped single cell SOFC based on materials from Indonesia's resources. Calcia Cobalt Zinc Oxide (CCZO) is an alternative cathode to replace conventional cathode such as Lanthanum Strontium Manganite (LSM). CCZO cathode was made using spray coating. Calcia can also substitute Ytrria as a stabilizer of zirconia in electrolyte fabrication. Calcia-stabilized Zirconia (CSZ) electrolyte was produced using spray coating. NiO anode was fabricated through hydraulic pressing. The single cell was operated using hydrogen (125 sccm) as a fuel and ambient air (500 sccm) as an oxidant. The results showed an open-circuit voltage (OCV) of 0.577, 0.558, and 0.513 V and produced the maximum power densities of 1.4, 2.8, and 10 mW m⁻² at 500, 600, and 700°C, respectively. Measurement of the cell impedance indicated that the overall resistance decreased with increasing temperature.