Nickel-based anode with microstructured molybdenum dioxide internal reformer for liquid hydrocarbon-fueled solid oxide fuel cells

•A bilayer structured SOFC with MoO2 internal micro-reformer is fabricated.•A bilayer structured SOFC is successfully operated with n-dodecane fuel mixture.•A bilayer structured SOFC produces a power density output 4 W cm−2 at 750 °C.•A bilayer structured SOFC over 24 h operation shows no coking.

The present paper describes the fabrication of a bilayer structured solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). Its anode consists of molybdenum dioxide (MoO2)-based internal micro-reformer in the form of a porous thin film deposited over conventional Ni/YSZ cermet. Cell performance was measured by directly feeding a mixture of n-dodecane and air at different O2/C ratios to the anode at 750 °C. Our findings show that the bilayer structured SOFC operating at an O2/C ratio of 0.64 led to the highest initial cell performance with an initial maximum power density >4.0 W cm−2. At a constant voltage of 0.7 V and O2/C ratio of 0.64, the bilayer structured SOFC showed a gradual increase in power density output over the first 2 h, followed by a stable output of 3.6 W cm−2 for the next 10 h. The tested cell showed no indication of coking and phase transformation. When a conventional Ni-based SOFC without the internal micro-reformer was operated under similar conditions, its initial performance and long-term stability were found to be significantly lower than that of bilayer structured SOFC due to Ni oxidation under high O2/C ratio or coking under the low O2/C ratio. These results open up new opportunities for efficiently generating electrical power from various types of high energy density liquid fuels using SOFCs with an integrated MoO2 micro- reformer.

Graphical AbstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide