Nondestructive characterization methods for monolithic solid oxide fuel cells

Monolithic solid oxide fuel cells (MSOFCS) represent a potential breakthrough in fuel cell technology, provided that reliable fabrication methods can be developed. Fabrication difficulties arise in several steps of the processing: First is the fabrication of uniform thin (305 {mu}m) single-layer and trilayer green tapes (the trilayer tapes of anode/electrolyte/cathode and anode/interconnect/cathode must have similar coefficients of thermal expansion to sinter uniformly and to have the necessary electrochemical properties); Second is the development of fuel and oxidant channels in which residual stresses are likely to develop in the tapes; Third is the fabrication of a ``complete`` cell for which the bond quality between layers and the quality of the trilayers must be established; and Last, attachment of fuel and oxidant manifolds and verification of seal integrity. Purpose of this report is to assess nondestructive characterization methods that could be developed for application to laboratory, prototype, and full-scale MSOFCs