A tubular segmented-in-series solid oxide fuel cell with metallic interconnect films: A performance study through mathematical simulations

•A mathematical model for a tubular segmented-in-series solid oxide fuel cell.•A simulation study is performed for a silver-glass composite interconnect.•The new interconnect gives benefits in terms of power density and design flexibility.•The interconnect geometry and conductivity play a crucial role in performance.•The model serves as a tool for performance prediction and design optimization.

In a segmented-in-series solid oxide fuel cell (SIS-SOFC), an interconnect (IC) provides electrical contact and sealing between the anode of one cell and the cathode of the next. A metallic silver-glass composite (SGC) is considered a promising alternative to ceramic IC materials in SIS-SOFCs. In this work, a simulation study is performed on a tubular SIS-SOFC to assess the effectiveness of the SGC-IC design and to predict the SOFC performance characteristics for various IC geometries and conductivities. The developed model provides detailed information on cell behavior, such as the internal resistance, the potential/current distribution, and the local gas species concentration. The results demonstrate that the SGC material greatly reduces a potential drop across the IC film. Thus, it provides the following substantial advantages over conventional ceramic IC materials: (i) increased power density and (ii) a larger degree of flexibility in the cell design. Moreover, the validation test, i.e., comparison of the simulated results with the experimental data, indicates that the model could serve as a valuable tool for design optimization to achieve the required SOFC performance.