Performance analysis of intermediate-temperature disk type seal-less solid oxide fuel cell using pure hydrogen as fuel

A one-dimensional model is built to simulate the power production characteristics of an intermediate-temperature disk type seal-less SOFC. By using the developed model, current density-single cell voltage (i-V) characteristic curves are estimated. It is found that the numerically obtained i-V characteristic curves coincide well with the corresponding experimental results, confirming the validity of the developed model. The effect of the electronic conductivity of electrolyte on cell performance is also investigated. The single cell voltage reduction by this effect is estimated about 0.02-0.03 V, and a detailed mechanism of this single cell voltage reduction is proposed. In addition, the effect of gas back diffusion on the cell performance is investigated, and it is made clear that the single cell voltage reduction by this effect is negligible except for very low fuel utilization values and very high cell temperatures.