ABSTRACT
The solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) has the highest operating temperature (about 1000 °C) among practically all the important fuel cells under development. High temperature is a requirement since it was developed with the intention of operating on coal as the primary fuel, or as a “coal gas cell,” meaning that coal-derived fuel gases would be used as the primary fuels. Today, both coal-derived gases and natural gas are being considered as the primary fuel. Solid oxide fuel cell had been sometimes referred to as “the third-generation fuel cell technology,” because it was expected that SOFCs would reach the market place after the commercialization of PAFCs (the so-called first generation) and MCFCs (the second generation).
