Gelcasting of Strontium Doped Lanthanum Manganite for Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Applications

Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are devices that offer high efficiency power output with negligible emissions. Cathode supported tubular SOFCs consist of porous cathode tubes made up of strontium doped lanthanum manganite, La1-xSrxMnO3 (LSM) that work as functional component as well as structural support for the rest of the cell components. Gelcasting is one of the most suitable methods for the fabrication of porous ceramics. This paper describes the fabrication of porous LSM cathode by gelcasting process. Gelcasting parameters such as monomer concentration, powder volume fraction, pH of the slurry, etc were optimized. Slow drying of green specimens minimized warpage and cracking. Sintered specimens with controlled porosity were obtained by the use of suitable pore-forming agents. The coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of sintered specimens was measured, which was found matching with the CTE values of cell components reported in the literature. These results have shown the suitability of the gelcast generated LSM cathodes for SOFC applications.