Abstract
Single-layer ceramic fuel cells consisting of Li0.15Ni0.45Zn0.4O2, Gd0.2Ce0.8O2 and a eutectic mixture of Li2CO3, Na2CO3 and K2CO3, were fabricated through extrusion-based 3D printing. The sintering temperature of the printed cells was varied from 700 °C to 1000 °C to identify the optimal thermal treatment to maximize the cell performance. It was found that the 3D printed single-layer cell sintered at 900 °C produced the highest power density (230 mW/cm2) at 550 °C, which is quite close to the performance (240 mW/cm2) of the single-layer cell fabricated through a conventional pressing method. The best printed cell still had high ohmic (0.46 Ω·cm2) and polarization losses (0.32 Ω·cm2) based on EIS measurements conducted in an open-circuit condition. The XRD spectra showed the characteristic peaks of the crystalline structures in the composite material. HR-TEM, SEM and EDS measurements revealed the morphological information of the composite materials and the distribution of the elements, respectively. The BET surface area of the single-layer cells was found to decrease from 2.93 m2/g to 0.18 m2/g as the sintering temperature increased from 700 °C to 1000 °C. The printed cell sintered at 900 °C had a BET surface area of 0.34 m2/g. The fabrication of single-layer ceramic cells through up-scalable 3D technology could facilitate the scaling up and commercialization of this promising fuel cell technology.
Highlights
Single-layer ceramic fuel cells are emerging as a potential fuel cell technology
Nanomaterials 2021, 11, 2180 result of redox reactions, O2- and H+ are generated, which travel through the lay estingly, the electrons generated at one side of the cell do not travel through th the layer operates as a fuel cell
In our earlier study [14], we systematically studied the effect of sintering temperature of triple-phase boundaries (TPBs)
Summary
Single-layer ceramic fuel cells are emerging as a potential fuel cell technology. In a short span of time since their invention in 2011 [1,2], these fuel cells have been reported to have remarkably high performance (up to 1 W/cm2 ) at a low temperature (550 ◦ C) [3–5]. The electrons generated at one side of the cell do not travel through the cell and the layer operates as a fuel cell. Nanomaterials 2021, 11, 2180 result of redox reactions, O2- and H+ are generated, which travel through the lay estingly, the electrons generated at one side of the cell do not travel through th the layer operates as a fuel cell. To explain the avoidance of short-circuiting in n cell technology, various hypotheses have been provided in the literature [3,7–9 the heterojunction, Schottky or PN-junction principle. More invest fuel cell technology, various hypotheses have been provided in the literature [3,7–9], such needed to better understand the cause of electronic blockage in the cell. A schematic the ope structure of a single-layer ceramic fuel cell is shown, illustrating the operation the cell
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