Protonic ceramic fuel cells (PCFCs) are clean and efficient
power
generation devices operating at intermediate temperatures. However,
manufacturing difficulties have limited their commercialization, especially
for promising tubular PCFCs. Herein, we report a cost-effective 3D
printing technique for manufacturing large-area tubular PCFCs (e.g.,
15.7 cm2), featured with the use of commercial raw materials,
a small amount of binder, and a CO2 laser for rapid in
situ drying. The technical advantages enable low-cost material preparation
and efficient achievement of exemplary shape/dimension-controlled
uniform microstructures in porous anode support, dense electrolyte,
and porous cathode. The 3D-printed tubular PCFC (∼12.5 cm2) exhibits a power output of 2.45 W at 650 °C. Meanwhile,
the long-term stability is confirmed during 200 h of operation. This
novel 3D printing offers great potential to advance PCFCs from the
laboratory to larger scales for realistic applications.