SLA-3D printed electrolytes for solid oxide fuel cells.

TARANCÓN RUBIO, A.; TOSCANI, L. M.; ESPARZA FERRERA, P.; LARRONDO, S. A.; CANALES VÁZQUEZ, J.; HERNÁNDEZ-AFONSO, L.

Londres

Congreso; 2nd International Conference on 3D Printing Technology and Innovation; 2018

Fuel cells are one of the most reliable systems for clean energy production as heat and water are the only by-products of the electrochemical reaction between fuel (hydrogen) and oxidant (oxygen), which avoid the limitations dictated by Carnot?s cycle. Additionally, these systems are robust, modular and silent and therefore may find a wide range of potential applications.Among the different types of fuel cells, Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) operates at high temperatures (650-950°C) and the resulting residual heat may be harnessed which in turn gives rise to devices exhibiting the largest efficiencies. Each SOFC individual cell has three elements: a porous anode (Ni cermet), a porous cathode (La0.8 Sr0.2MnO3-δ) and a dense electrolyte (yttrium-doped zirconia, YSZ) that separates both electrodes. The performance of these cells depends closely on the so-called Triple Phase Boundary (TPB), which is an active zone where the three necessary phases coincide and hence the electrochemical occur. During the last decades, several materials processing strategies have been explored to optimise the TPB in the search for performance enhancements and also to improve extremely relevant parameters such as mechanical stability, optimization of the gas flows to minimize polarizations by concentration, and thermal and redox instability. In this work, we present the use of 3D printing technology to produce customized YSZ microstructures, their functionalization with electrode materials andfurther evaluation of the electrochemical activity under both oxidizing and reducing conditions.