Internal steam reforming of natural gas in SOFCs is an attractive option offering faster response to load variations and significant cost reductions due to higher efficiency and to simpler balance of plant. An alternative approach for the direct use of natural gas has been previously proposed, i.e., the gradual internal steam reforming of methane. A set-up was developed for the demonstration of this concept that was tested up to high methane/water vapor ratios, i.e., CH4/H2O=12, without carbon deposition. The gradual Internal Reforming of methane was demonstrated in this first approach, in spite of very low current densities (3.2 mA cm(-2) at 200 mV). The poor adherence between lanthanum chromite and electrolyte explains the high electrolyte/anode interfacial resistance that finally leads to low performances of lanthanum chromite as anode material. The current density was higher with CH4-H2O Mixtures than with hydrogen, and was finally found to increase with the CH4/H2O ratio. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.