Microscopic techniques for analysis of ceramic fuel cells

Ceramic fuel cells, such as solid oxide fuel cells, convert the chemical energy of a fuel directly to electricity. To make these to a commercial success, several challenges need to be solved such as lowering the operating temperature and improving long-term stability. Since ceramic fuel cells are complex nanolevel structures, it is crucial to understand how the actual nanostructure of the cell is linked to its macroscopic performance. This paper reviews how different microscopic techniques have been used to obtain information of the fuel cell structure in both two-dimensional and three-dimensional and how this information have been used to solve problems related to the cell performance. Finally, the paper proposes how recent development in the field of microscopy could be applied to fuel cell studies.