Al-doped Ni/YSZ Anode Material with Improved Electrical Conductivity for MS-SOFC Fabrication by Cosintering

The effect of Al doping on Ni‐YSZ anode sintering in metal‐supported solid oxide fuel cell (MS‐SOFC) was studied in the current work.The electrical conductivity of the Al‐doped anode was found to increase considerably. Such result may be attributed to the inhibited sintering of insulating YSZ caused by the segragation of Al2O3 at grain boundaries. It was found that the addition of Al to the anode accounts for a finer grained YSZ matrix, thus coating the conducting Ni grains to a lesser extent. 5 wt% Al‐doped NiO used for Ni‐YSZ anode material gave the finest microstucture and the highest electrical conductivity at room temperature although it showed the lowest bulk density. Overall, Al‐doped Ni‐YSZ anode material was found to be a suitable material for the anode in MS‐SOFC produced by cosintering.