Numerical study of temperature distribution in tubular segmented-in-series SOFC with co-flow and counter-flow arrangements

Tubular segmented-in-series solid oxide fuel cells (SIS-SOFCs) are great for industry because they work more efficiently. Temperature uniformity directly affects thermal stress and material degradation. In this study, the coupling effect of electrochemical reaction and mass, momentum, and heat transfer within a 10-cell in-series SOFC are characterized using the finite element method. The temperature distribution under co-flow and counter-flow arrangements is analyzed. The results show that the maximum temperature difference under the coflow arrangement is 12% smaller than that under the counter-flow arrangement. This reduction is primarily attributed to enhanced convective heat transfer on the fuel side at the location of maximum temperature within the SIS-SOFC. As fuel utilization increases, the maximum temperature difference between the co-flow and counter-flow arrangements gradually decreases from 7 degrees C at the fuel utilization of 50% to 3 degrees C at the fuel utilization of 80%. Meanwhile, temperature non-uniformity in the 10-cell series region of the SIS-SOFC increases gradually under the co-flow arrangement while remaining relatively unchanged under the counter-flow arrangement.