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Projects: Projects for Investigator
Reference Number 2002-12-109-1-3
Title Implementation of 2nd generation SOFC anodes
Status Completed
Energy Categories Hydrogen and Fuel Cells(Fuel Cells) 100%;
Research Types Basic and strategic applied research 50%;
Applied Research and Development 50%;
Science and Technology Fields PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Chemistry) 50%;
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY 50%;
UKERC Cross Cutting Characterisation Not Cross-cutting 100%
Principal Investigator Professor JTS Irvine
No email address given
University of St Andrews
Award Type 3
Funding Source Carbon Trust
Start Date 01 April 2004
End Date 31 March 2006
Duration 24 months
Total Grant Value £128,021
Industrial Sectors
Region Scotland
Programme
 
Investigators Principal Investigator Professor JTS Irvine , University of St Andrews (99.999%)
  Other Investigator Project Contact , Rolls-Royce Fuel Cell Systems Ltd (0.001%)
Web Site
Objectives To evaluate possible substitutes or composites that might significantly enhance electrode properties then apply these anodes to Rolls-Royce format and test and evaluate performance characteristics.
Abstract Fuel cells offer a clean means of converting chemical energy to electrical energy at extremely high efficiencies. High temperature fuel cells, especially solid oxide (SOFC), are successfully being developed to produce this energy because they are capable of overcoming problems of poisoning by carbon monoxide and are therefore much more tolerant of the hydrocarbon fuels that are so widely accessible in the current energy economy. This project brings together the remarkable advances in anode material recently achieved at St Andrews with the flexibility of the Rolls-Royce SOFC concept. The recently reported St Andrews anode is the first novel anode material to offer sufficiently good electrode properties to enable its use in place of nickel. Until now SOFCs have had limited use on hydrocarbon fuels because of carbon buildup due to catalytic cracking, intolerance of sulphur compounds and difficulties caused by accidental oxidation of the electrode. Such concerns have led to a very active international search for second generation anodes for SOFCs, of which the St Andrews anode is a leading example, to replace the currently used nickel zirconia cements. The programme of work consists of developing and optimising the anode composition followed by performance and stability testing. This process will select a few of the best compositions for further study, which will be screen-printed onto Rolls-Royce substrates and chemically and microstructurally evaluated. Having passed thistest seven cell arrays will be made and tested using the Rolls-Royce standard test system. Finally, the data from these tests will be correlated and decisions made about scale-up of the process
Publications (none)
Final Report (none)
Added to Database 01/01/07