Study and fabrication of solid oxide fuel cells through tape casting and co-sintering

This work is dedicated to the devising of a low-cost fabrication process of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC). Technical requirements impose the shaping method: stripe casting as well as the materials used: Yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), nickel and lanthanum manganite doped with strontium (LSM). In order to comply with environmental requirements the developed process uses an aqueous barbotine solvent. We get electrodes and the electrolyte separately, the use of an absorbent drying process has enabled us to join 3 layers to form an elementary cell with great interfacial homogeneity. The resistance of the cell to sintering has been improved through the symmetrization of the deformations of the cell. In order to interpret the low electrical properties of the cell and its quick damaging, transmission microscopy studies have been performed. These studies have shown 2 facts. First, 2 isolating phases appear at the cathode (at the LSM/YSZ interface) because of a too high sintering temperature and secondly, a quick clustering of nickel grains appears during cell operation that leads to a local loss of the nickel grid percolation. This problem has been solved by increasing the size of nickel oxide grains from 0.5 μm to 3 μm) to stabilize the microstructure. The issue of the reactivity at the LSM/YSZ interfaces was tackled in 2 different ways, we have tried to lower the sintering temperature by using a zirconia nano-powder first and then by replacing zirconia in the electrolyte by gadolinium-doped ceria. The use of zirconia nano-powder has failed to decrease sintering temperature while preserving the electrolyte density and the use of ceria has triggered instabilities that have not yet been solved. Despite all these drawbacks, this process allows the fabrication of an excellent anode/electrolyte interface. (A.C.)