Internal current collection and thermofluidynamic enhancement in a microtubular SOFC

Abstract

A low-cost, durable and simple internal current collector is presented for microtubular SOFCs (µT-SOFC). The internal design does not require removal of external cell layers, and subsequent loss of active area required to expose the interior electrode for contacting. The brush-like, high surface area current collector device is adapted from heat exchanger turbuliser technology produced by CALGAVIN Ltd. The effectiveness of the hiTRAN® turbuliser as a µT-SOFC current collector is explored and its thermofluidynamic effects on the cell described, as well as coating of the hiTRAN® design to reduce electrical contact resistance. The final design achieved a current density at 0.7 V of 0.38 A.cm and peak power density of 0.27 W.cm , 4.3 times higher than the original design and 3.3 times higher than the state-of-the-art with the same base materials.