NiMo-Ceria-Zirconia Catalyst for Inert-Substrate-Supported Tubular Solid Oxide Fuel Cells Running on Model Gasoline

A NiMo-ceria-zirconia catalyst was developed for an inert-substrate-supported tubular single cell running on isooctane fuel. The tubular single cell consisted of an inert porous yttira-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) supporter, Ni-Ce0.8Sm0.2O1.9 (Ni-SDC) anode, YSZ/SDC bilayer electrolyte and La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3-delta (LSCF) cathode. The NiMo-ceria-zirconia catalyst was packed in the tubular channel of the single cell as a reforming unit. With application of the catalyst in the tubular cell, the mixture of isooctane and air can be efficiently reformed to simple syngas (a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide) at 750 degrees C. Compared to electrochemical performance of the single cell without the catalyst, applying the catalyst increased maximum power density of the single cell from 240 to 306 mW cm(-2), and the single cell exhibited significantly improved stability during the 18 h performance test. The results suggest the feasibility of applying the NiMo-ceria-zirconia catalyst for operating the tubular single cell using isooctane fuel.