A Support Layer for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

The use of a perforated, ceramic layer, laminated on top of a porous electrode, as a support structure for solid oxide fuel cells is described. The support layer can be used on either the anode or cathode side and allows for the fabrication of mechanically robust, impregnated electrodes. Using fuel cells based on yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), we demonstrate that the support layer can be made from YSZ or from a composite of YSZ and La0.3Sr0.7TiO3 (LST). It is shown that there is no solid-state reaction between LST and YSZ, even after calcination at 1550 °C. Unlike pure LST, LST–YSZ composites can form a laminated structure on porous YSZ. Unlike pure YSZ, a dense LST–YSZ composite with 60-wt% LST exhibited an electronic conductivity of 7.6 S/cm at 700 °C after reduction in H2 at 1000 °C, making the composite layer attractive for current collection in anode-supported cells.