Impact of yttria-stabilized zirconia contents in nickel cermet anodes for intermediate temperature-operated syngas-fueled thin film solid oxide fuel cells.

In this study, the performance and degradation behavior of thin-film SOFCs are investigated under various syngas fuel conditions, including CO, H2, and a nickel-yttria-stabilized zirconia (Ni-YSZ) anode composition. By increasing the YSZ ratio, three cell types (Cell N, Cell NY, and Cell NYY) are analyzed under three different fuel conditions. This research, conducted at 650 °C, establishes Cell NY as the top-performing variant, whereas Cell N experiences significant degradation owing to metal dusting caused by carbon deposition. The DRT curve peaks confirm severe Ni agglomeration for the NYY and N cells under these conditions, whereas Cell NY consistently maintains the highest performance. These results reveal the impact of carbon-deposition-induced metal dusting and Ni agglomeration on cell performance. This study highlights the importance of understanding and managing these degradation factors to enhance the reliability and efficiency of syngas-fueled thin-film SOFCs. • Thin-film SOFCs' performance and degradation were studied under diverse syngas and anode conditions. • Degradation varied at two temperatures, based on anode's YSZ ratio. • DRT distinguished degradation causes: metal dusting and Ni agglomeration. • Results show carbon-induced metal dusting and Ni agglomeration impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]