Microstructure of cermet support influences significantly the performance and stability of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The properties required for the support include high electrical conductivity, necessary permeability, good match of thermal expansion with other layers and high temperature strength. In this study, a porous Ni50Cr50-Al 2 O 3 cermet was designed as the support of SOFC. The porous cermet was deposited by flame spraying with a powder mixture of 30%vol Al 2 O 3 and 35%vol Ni50Cr50 and 35%vol polyester. The effect of cermet microstructure on its gas permeability was investigated. The electrical conductivity, thermal expansion coefficient and bending strength of cermet support were also studied. The results showed that the gas leakage rate of the cermet support increased with the increase of polyester content in the starting powder. The thermal expansion coefficient of the composite cermet decreased with the increase of the volume fraction of Al 2 O 3 . Moreover, the electric conductivity of the cermet increased significantly after high temperature sintering, and reached 1015 S/cm after sintering at 1000°C for 15 hours. The three point bending strength of the Ni50Cr50-based cermet support reached 171 MPa. The cermet stability at high temperatures and SOFCs performance were discussed.

Anode layer, as the main site for the reaction of fuel and removal of byproducts, plays an important role in anode-supported solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). Generally, high electrical conductivity and gas permeability (porosity) of the anode materials are required to reduce the polarization loss of SOFC. This study focuses on the manufacturing of porous anode layers for SOFC. The NiO/8YSZ cermets anode coatings are fabricated by atmospheric plasma spray (APS) using the blended powder of nickel coated graphite (Ni-graphite) after oxidation (NiO-graphite) and 8mol%Y 2 O 3 -stabilized ZrO 2 (8YSZ). To increase the porosity and the uniformity of the coatings, nickel coated graphite with low density is used as the starting feedstock instead of the conventional pure Ni powder. To balance the conductivity (Ni), porosity (graphite), and structural stability (8YSZ) of the coatings, the effects of process parameters such as hydrogen (H 2 ) gas flow rate, spraying distance, and pore formation precursor (carbon black addition) on the microstructures of resulting coatings by APS are investigated. The results show that the NiO/8YSZ anode coatings with high conductivity, structural stability and porosity could be deposited by APS with moderate H 2 gas flow rate and short distance. The microstructure of the coating is mainly associated with the degree of melting of impact particles.