A robust metal-supported solid oxide electrolysis cell for high-efficiency CO2 electrolysis via a direct assembly method

The solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) can convert greenhouse gases into chemical energy using renewable energy sources. This work presents a high-efficiency barrier-layer-free Ni mesh metal-supported SOEC (MS-SOEC) that is fabricated using a directly assembled approach. Compared with the sintered MS-SOEC, the co-sintering-free fabrication method retains fine microstructures enabling high electrochemical performance. At 800 °C and 1.5 V, a single cell fabricated by this direct assembly process exhibits an impressive electrochemical performance, achieving an electrolysis current density of 1.45 A cm −2 under 50 % CO 2 /CO condition. Moreover, durability tests demonstrate good stability at 750 °C and 1.3 V for over 200 h. This robust performance and operating stability may be attributed to the redox stability of the electrodes and minimal ohmic loss. Consequently, our results indicate that this co-sintering-free MS-SOEC structure could be a promising technology for electrolyzing CO 2 .