| Eight (8) mol% yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ), an electrolyte material for solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC), has been
deposited onto porous non-conducting NiO-YSZ substrate using electrophoretic deposition technique (EPD) from
a stable non-aqueous suspension of YSZ. Normally, EPD cannot be performed on a non-conducting substrate, but,
in this present study, YSZ particulate film has been successfully deposited on a non-conducting NiO-YSZ substrate
following two different EPD approaches:(a) using a conducting metallic plate on the reverse side of the porous
NiO-YSZ anode substrate and (b) using a conducting polymer coated NiO-YSZ substrate. The deposited films are
then formed dense coatings of 5-15 m after sintering at 1400oC for 6 h in air. Surface and cross-sectional
morphologies of green and sintered films deposited by different EPD approaches are investigated using SEM.
La0.65Sr0.3MnO3 (LSM), a cathode for SOFC, is then screen-printed onto the electrolyte layer of such sintered half
cells (anode+electrolyte) prepared by both the above approaches to construct SOFC single cells. A maximum
output power density of 0.37 W.cm–2 is obtained using single cells prepared by conducting metallic plate assisted
EPD compared to that of 0.73 W.cm–2 for polymer coated at 800oC using H2 as fuel and O2 as oxidant. |
