IntroductionThe interconnect is a critical component in a planar solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) since, in addition to acting as the electrical connection between individual cells in series, it must also be gas tight in order to prevent mixing of the fuel and oxidizer. Doped lanthanum chromites exhibit the required phase stability, high electronic conductivity, and low ionic conductivity in both reducing and oxidizing environments making them suitable as interconnects at high temperatures (1000°C). Additionally, these materials are chemically compatible with the other fuel cell components [1]. Some independent studies reveal, however, that lanthanum chromite expands in a reducing atmosphere [2±5], at oxygen partial pressures well within the eective operating range of an SOFC. Doping with aliovalent B-site additives reduces the lattice expansion signi®cantly [6]. The lanthanum chromite powders that we have chosen to characterize contain the traditional Ca and Sr acceptor dopants, Ni and Zn dopants, and some double dopants (Sr with Ni, Cu, and Mg).In our previous publications [7,8] we reported on the electrical conductivity, microstructure, and mechanical properties of Ca-and Sr-doped LaCrO 3 interconnects for SOFO. Relative density, secondary phases, and grain boundary layers were found to have an impact on the electrical conductivity and the mechanical strength of these materials.Production of gas-tight, defect-free interconnects for SOFC is important regarding electrical output and lifetime. Defect-free ceramic composites with ®ne grain microstructures can be obtained by the processing of colloidal particles [9]. During the mixing, dispersing, forming, and ®ring steps good colloidal control and hence knowledge of the surface chemistry of the components is important. Sintering of the green body to maximum density depends on the surface free energy available in the powder, and the particle packing eciency.Hence, important characterization of the ceramic powders is by the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area, and by the particle size distribution. Knowledge about the surface properties also gives guidelines Abstract Particle size distributions, measured by photon-correlation spectroscopy and Brunauer-EmmettTeller (BET) surface areas, were determined for several lanthanum chromite powders with dierent dopants. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to reveal similarities among the dierent powders with regard to the input variables particle size, BET surface area, and calcination temperature. Correlation among the variables was also easily revealed by PCA. Partial-least-squares multivariate-response modelling was used to calibrate the BET surface area from particle size data and calcination temperatures. A model explaining 93% of the variance in the data, with good predictive power, was developed. The model revealed that the content of smallest-sized particles and the calcination temperature were important parameters in the prediction of the BET surface area.