Charles Dominic Iacovangelo

Electrolyte Loss and Performance Decay of Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells

Postmortem chemical analysis, gas chromatography, electrode polarization studies, atomic adsorption spectroscopy, and Hg intrusion porosimetry have been employed in studies of the extent of electrolyte loss from cell components and the resultant performance decay. This study has identified electrolyte creep, hardware corrosion, and chrome lithiation as the pivotal electrolyte consumption mechanisms. The principal mechanisms of performance decay are increased cell resistance, increased cathode polarization, and deteriorating gas compositions due to gas crossover and parasitic reactions at the wet seal edges of the cell.

Bubble Pressure Barriers for Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells Materials, Properties, and In‐Cell Testing

Operation of a molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) comprising an anode, a cathode, and a carbonate-filled electrolyte structure is often limited by the development of cracks within the electrolyte structure. This allows mixing of the anode and cathode gases and causes, at best, a deterioration in cell performance. One possible solution to this problem is to incorporate an electrolyte-filled barrier layer, i.e., a bubble pressure barrier (bpb), as an integral part of the electrode structure. Methodologies for the fabrication of anode bpbs from metal-plated ceramics and metal-oxide-impregnated layers are presented. The necessity of tailoring the bpbs physical properties, e.g., pore size distribution, porosity, and microstructure, to those of the other cell components is discussed. Molten carbonate fuel cells containing anode-bpb electrodes and hot-pressed electrolyte structures displayed improved performance relative to those without bpbs. Further, MCFCs that possessed a bpb were capable of withstanding several thermal cycles between 650/sup 0/C, the cell operating temperature, and 25/sup 0/C. The slight performance deterioration observed after a thermal cycle is explained by the formation of an internal cell across the anode-bpb composite.