Characteristic and preparation of Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 as the anode support for solid oxide fuel cells by phase inversion technology

•Nanoscale Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 material with high specific area was prepared as anode of SOFCs.•The NiO–Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 anode with unique structure was obtained by phase-inversion technique.•Anode-supported cells exhibit good power density of 508 mW cm−2 when operated at 800 °C.•The NiO–Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 anode exhibits good resistance to carbon deposition.

Nanoscale oxide Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 powder has been prepared by a microwave combustion method as the anode material for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs). The Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 material has been characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and the BET method. The NiO–Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 anode-supported cells are prepared by phase inversion technique and YSZ electrolyte thin film is obtained by dip-coating. The dual-pore structure anode and dense electrolyte are observed by SEM after co-firing process. Excellent electrochemical performance of single cell is demonstrated operating on hydrogen (3% H2O), exhibiting the maximum power densities of 218, 342 and 508 mW cm−2 at 700, 750 and 800 °C, respectively. In addition, NiO–Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 anode possess high resistance to carbon deposition, indicating which could be promising candidate anodes for direct hydrocarbon SOFCs.