Electrolyte Supported Cells (ESC)

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Electrolyte Supported Cells (ESC)

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The electrolyte supported cells consist of an electrolyte tile which separates anode and cathode spatially and conducts oxygen ions at operation temperatures in the range of 750 °C to 950 °C. At the cathode oxygen molecules are taken from the gas phase and form oxygen ions in an electrochemical reaction with electrons from the cathode. The formed oxygen ions move through the electrolyte to the anode, where they react with hydrogen to water by releasing the electrons to the anode. This way, excess charges are generated at the cathode and anode, which can be utilized as electrical current. To achieve a higher voltage, several cells are connected in series to form a stack, which is the current providing unit of a fuel cell system.

Our electrolyte supported cells have a high planarity and are optimized for the usage in SOFC-stacks. Highly efficient electrodes with low polarization resistances have been developed. The robustness of the cells has been proven by several long term tests, by thermo cycles, and by oxidation/reduction tests. In our R&D department the cells are continuously improved regarding power density and robustness. We also developed the cell type KeraCell III, which is based on a LSCF oxygen electrode. This cell type provides a high power density both as fuel cell and electrolyzer cell.

Oxygen electrode: LSM; LSCF
Hydrogen electrode: NiO and YSZ or GDC
Electrolyte substrates: 10Sc1CeSZ; 8YSZ; 6Sc1CeSZ; YScSZ oder 3YSZ

Dimensions according to customer

Our standard cell sizes are 50x50x0.15 mm³ and 100x100x0.15 mm³. In addition, custom-built round or rectangular geometries can be produced. Depending on the geometry, we also offer symmetrical cells and half cells