Improvement of electrochemical performance of anode-supported SOFCs by NiO–Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95 nanocomposite powders

In this study, NiO–Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95 (NiO–GDC) nanocomposite powders were synthesized by hydroxide co-precipitation method, and applied to improve the microstructure of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) anodes. The NiO–GDC anodes prepared from the NiO–GDC nanocomposite powders showed uniform microstructure with uniform distribution of NiO and GDC phases. Due to the uniform phase distribution, the Ni–GDC anodes prepared from the NiO–GDC nanocomposite powders had longer triple phase boundary (TPB), which resulted in enhanced electrochemical reactions. The anode-supported SOFC fabricated from the co-precipitated NiO–GDC nanocomposite powders exhibited higher electrochemical performance than the anode-supported SOFC fabricated from the mechanically mixed NiO–GDC nanopowders. The experimental results show that the use of the Ni–GDC anodes with uniform microstructure can effectively improve the electrochemical performance of anode-supported SOFC.