3-D model calculation for planar SOFC

A three-dimensional mathematical model for a planar SOFC was constructed. T he concentrations of the chemical species, the temperature distribution, th e potential distribution, and the current density were calculated using a s ingle-unit model with double channels of co-flow or counter-flow pattern. T he finite volume method was employed for the calculation, which is based on the fundamental conservation laws of mass, energy, and electrical charge. The internal or external steam-reforming, the water-shift reaction, and the diffusion of gases in the porous electrodes were taken into the model., Th e effects. of the cell size, the operating voltage and the thermal conducti vity of the cell components on the calculated results were investigated. Fr om the simulated temperature distributions in the electrolyte and the inter connector, the stress distributions were calculated using the finite elemen t method. The results demonstrated that the steam reforming would generate internal stresses of several tens MPa in an electrolyte. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.