研究期間：10301~10312;Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) operate at a high-temperature range of 650 oC to 1000oC in a direct conversion process such that they have the highest efficiencies of all fuel cells. The high-temperature operation, however, gives rise to significant thermal stresses in the SOFC system due to thermal mismatch between components. When a ceramic component is held under such a prolonged thermal load (stress), pre-existing, subcritical pores or defects can grow to failure and degrade the performance of an SOFC system during service. The purpose of this study is to characterize the effects of working environments (reducing and oxidizing atmospheres) on the bonding strength of the glass-ceramic sealant/metallic interconnect joint for planar SOFC (pSOFC) systems. In particular, high-temperature mechanical testing of the glass ceramic sealant-metallic interconnect joint will be conducted in a hydrogen-containing, reducing environment for assessment of the tensile and shear joint strength when subjected to thermal stresses. Based on the experimental results, an appropriate fracture strength assessment model for pSOFC stack joints will be developed and applied to the pSOFC system being developed at the Institute of Nuclear Energy Research.
