ECONOMIZATION OF SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELLS

SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELLS OFFER MANY ADVANTAGES OVER STANDARD POWER PRODUCTION SYSTEMS, INCLUDING FULL CYCLE EFFICIENCIES OF 60%, A WIDE RANGE OF USABLE FUELS, AND ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND COMBUSTION WITH VERY LOW NOX EMISSIONS. HOWEVER, PROBLEMS SUCH AS COST AND LOW PERFORMANCE MUST BE RESOLVED. THIS PHASE I PROJECT CONCERNS THE DEVELOPMENT A PLANAR, SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELL WITH A UNITIZED BIOPOLAR DESIGN USING LOW RESISTIVITY, THIN, SOLID OXIDE FILMS PRODUCED BY REACTIVE MAGNETRON SPUTTERING. THE CELLS UTILIZE LOW COST FLOW FIELD MATERIALS AND ARE CAPABLE OF OPERATING DIRECTLY ON NATURAL GAS AND AIR AS REACTANTS. THESE FEATURES REDUCE PRODUCTION COSTS AND SYSTEM COMPLEXITY AS WELL AS ALLOW OPERATION AT TEMPERATURES OF ABOUT 700 DEGREES CENTIGRADE. THE PHASE I PROGRAM TESTS TWO DIFFERENT LOW COST FLOW FIELDS: GRAPHITE PAPER AND NICKEL FELT. THE PROGRAM COMPARES PERFORMANCE OF THESE CELLS TO PERFORMANCE DATA OBTAINED UNDER A NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (NSF) SOFC GRANT CURRENTLY UNDER WAY. THIS NSF PROGRAM IS DEVELOPING AN OPTIMIZED ELECTRODE/ELECTROLYTE STURCTURE, WHICH CAN THEN BE USED IN THE PRESENT DOE PROGRAM. THE GOAL FOR THE DOE PROGRAM IS TO OBTAIN FLOW FIELDS IN THE COST RANGE OF $50 TO $100/FT(2) THAT WILL NOT DEGRADE IN THE FUEL CELL ENVIRONMENT. THE PROGRAM INVESTIGATES PERFORMANCE ON NATURAL GAS AND AIR AT PRESSURES OF NO MORE THAN 75 PSIG AT 0.5 V, 500 A/FT(2) AT ABOUT 700 DEGREES CENTIGRADE, OVER FOUR PERIODS OF 6 HOURS EACH.