An overview of the tubular solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) development at Westinghouse is presented in this paper. The basic operating principles of SOFCs, evolution in tubular cell design and performance improvement, selection criteria for cell component materials, and cell processing techniques are discussed. The commercial goal is to develop a cell that can operate for 5 to 10 years. Results of cell test operated for more than 50,000 hours are presented. Since 1986, significant progress has been made in the evolution of cells with higher power, lower cost and improved thermal cyclic capability. Also in this period, successively larger multi-kilowatt electrical generators systems have been built and successfully operated for more than 7000 hours
