Prospective use of the 3D printing technology for the microstructural engineering of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell components

Abstract

A cost-effective micro-manufacturing process to accurately build 3D microstructures for their prospective use in the fabrication of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells components has been tested. The 3D printing method, based on the stereolithography, allows solidifying layer by layer a dispersion of ceramic material in a liquid photosensitive organic monomer. A simple projector, a computer-controlled z-stage and a few PowerPoint slides may be used for the fabrication of a wide range of complex 3D microstructures in few minutes. In this work, 3D ceramic microstructures based on the yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) were successfully fabricated. The microstructured ceramic components produced were stable after sintering at 1400 °C for 4 h. Impedance measurements show that the fabrication process does not have any detrimental effect on the electrical properties of the structured material.