Ceramic electrochemical cells with 3D Printing  

This 3D printing technology is capable of manufacturing customised plug-and-play SOFC cells in one step. It redefines the SOFC manufacturing paradigm, enabling the simple manufacture of such devices by fusing more than 60 steps into just one by printing layer-by-layer of consecutive active materials to generate fuel cells directly stacked one on top of the other. It makes use of additive manufacturing technologies that open up the possibilities of SOFC designs to an almost free form, thereby increasing the flexibility of the manufacturing process and widening the range of applications due to easy product customisation, even for the portable/transport sector (inaccessible until now). In addition, this technology enables the manufacture of SOFCs without joints, eliminating the weakest point of the current technology, thus increasing its durability. The development of this “tabletop factory” to manufacture SOFC-based devices represents a cost reduction of more than 60% per kW along with a reduction of the initial investment required by up to an order of magnitude.