Preconditioning treatment to enhance redox tolerance of solid oxide fuel cells
AssigneeVersa Power Systems, Ltd.
InventorsAnthony Wood, David Waldbillig
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Abstract
A high temperature, redox tolerant fuel cell anode electrode and method of fabrication in which the anode electrode is pre-conditioned by application of an initial controlled redox cycle to the electrode whereby an initial re-oxidation of the anode electrode is carried out at temperatures less than or equal to about 650° C.
Claims21
A method for preconditioning a solid oxide fuel cell anode electrode comprising the steps of:
- subjecting a sintered said anode electrode to an initial redox cycle in which re-oxidation is carried out at a temperature less than or equal to about 650° C.
A method of fabricating a solid oxide fuel cell anode electrode comprising the steps of:
- forming a mixture of metal oxide particles and YSZ particles into a green anode structure;
- sintering said green anode structure, forming a sintered anode structure;
- contacting said sintered anode structure with a reducing agent at a reducing temperature in a range of about 600° C. to about 1000° C., forming a reduced anode structure having a first microstructure;
- contacting said reduced anode structure with an oxidizing agent at an oxidizing temperature in a range of about400° C. to about 650° C., forming an oxidized anode structure;
- and
- contacting said oxidized anode structure with said reducing agent at said reducing temperature, forming said reduced anode structure with a second microstructure.
In a solid oxide fuel cell having a metal-cermet anode electrode, a method for enhancing redox tolerance of said solid oxide fuel cell comprising the steps of:
- contacting said metal-cermet anode electrode with an oxidizing agent at a temperature in a range of about 400° C. to about 650° C., forming an oxidized anode electrode;
- and
- contacting said oxidized anode electrode with a reducing agent at a reducing temperature in a range of about 600° C. to about 1000° C., forming a preconditioned metal-cermet anode electrode.
In a solid oxide fuel cell having an anode electrode, a cathode electrode and a solid electrolyte disposed between said anode electrode and said cathode electrode, the improvement comprising:
- said anode electrode preconditioned by an initial re-oxidation at a temperature less than or equal to about 650° C.
A solid oxide fuel cell anode electrode comprising:
- a porous metal-YSZ structure having a microstructure produced by initially re-oxidizing said structure at a temperature less than or equal to about 650° C.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.