Ceramic Fuel Cells Limited

Richard Donelson

Theresa Lin

Darren Bawden Hickey

A method of alleviating edge curling when laminated structures comprising layers of green material having different shrinkage rates are sintered comprises applying to a face () of edges () the first layer () having the higher shrinkage rate green sinterable material, opposite to the second layer () having the lower shrinkage rate green sinterable material, an edge strip () of a green sinterable material also having a shrinkage rate lower than the first layer, and then firing the laminated structure. The edge strip may be partly or, advantageously, wholly embedded in the first layer. The sinterable materials of the second layer and edge strip may be the same or similar. The invention is particularly applicable to solid oxide fuel cell sub-structures in which the first layer is the anode layer and the second layer is the electrolyte layer.

Laminated structure and method of forming same

A fuel cell assembly ( ) comprising a stack of a plurality of planar fuel cells ( ) each comprising an electrolyte layer ( ) having an anode layer ( ) on one side and a cathode layer ( ) on the other side and a plurality of interconnect members ( ), each fuel cell ( ) being disposed between and in electrical contact with an adjacent pair of interconnect members ( ) with oxygen-containing gas passage means ( ) being formed between the cathode layer ( ) of each fuel cell ( ) and the adjacent interconnect member ( ) and fuel gas passage means ( ) being formed between the anode layer ( ) of each fuel cell ( ) and the adjacent interconnect member ( ), and wherein a chamber ( ) of greater height than the thickness of the respective fuel cell ( ) is defined between the adjacent interconnect members ( ) in each pair within which the fuel cell ( ) is received, and electrically conductive compressible means ( ) also disposed within the chamber ( ) in electrical contact with a first side ( ) of the fuel cell ( ) and the adjacent interconnect member ( ) urges the fuel cell ( ) towards the adjacent interconnect member ( ) on the second side ( ) thereof to maintain the fuel cell ( ) in electrical contact with both adjacent interconnect members ( ). The fuel cell assembly ( ) may comprise a single fuel cell ( ) between two interconnect members ( ). The compressible means ( ) may comprise a corrugated sheet ( ) of Ni or Ni alloy.

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Mount Waverley, Australia

Richard Donelson