A two-dimensional modeling of a lab-scale planar Direct Carbon Fuel Cell (DCFC) of 20 mm in diameter is developed by taking into account of the electrochemical mechanisms and mass and heat transfer phenomena in all regions of the cell simultaneously. The electrodes and the electrolyte of the DCFC are both considered as distinct regions with different local properties such as permeability, conductivity and diffusivity. An improved packed bed anodic structure with a finite thickness is also adopted. General boundary conditions are implemented by taking into consideration the species concentrations at the DCFC inlet such as oxygen concentration which is a very important parameter to determine the cell efficiency. The effects of the main operating parameters such as temperature, inlet gas flow velocity and porosity of the electrolyte matrix on the DCFC efficiency are investigated. A sensitivity analysis based on numerical simulations of the effects of cathode kinetic parameters and the anode specific surface area is also performed. Good agreement is obtained between numerical results and experimental data with an absolute average deviation of about 9%. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.