A one-chamber solid electrolyte fuel cell for chemical cogeneration

A one chamber solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) which works in a flow of a mixture of CH₄ and air has been studied in the present author's laboratory. This new type cell consists of Pt | Solid Electrolyte | Au, in which both electrodes are exposed to the CH₄₊₂ai r mixture with a CH₄/O₂ ratio of 2 at elevated temperatures, and it generates an electric power producing hydrogen and carbon monoxide (synthetic gas) with a H₂/CO ratio of about 2. A large difference in catalytic activity for the partial oxidation of CH₄ between the Pt and Au electrode materials leads to an oxygen concentration cell which can generate an electric power between them. In this paper the author describes such a one-chamber fuel cell with respect to their structural feature, performance as a fuel cell and their component materials citing the experimental results made by his laboratory's group. Paper presented at the 97th Xiangshan Science Conference on New Solid State Fuel Cells, Xiangshan, Beijing, China, June 14–17, 1998.