In order to develop high performance intermediate temperature (< 800 degrees C) solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) with a lower fabrication cost, a pressurized spray process of ceramic suspensions has been established to prepare both dense yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) electrolyte membranes and transition anode layers on NiO + YSZ anode supports. A single cell with 10 mu m thick YSZ electrolyte on a porous anode support and similar to 20 mu m thick cathode layer showed peak power densities of only 212 mW cm(-2) at 700 degrees C and 407 mW cm(-2) for 800 degrees C. While a cell with 10 mu m thick YSZ electrolyte and a transition layer on the porous anode support using a ultra-fine NiO + YSZ powder showed peak power densities of 346 and 837 mW cm(-2) at 700 and 800 degrees C, respectively. The dramatic improvement of cell performance was attributed to the much improved anode microstructure that was confirmed by both scanning electron microscopes (SEM) observation and impedance spectroscopy. The results have demonstrated that a pressurized spray coating is a suitable technique to fabricate high performance SOFCs and at lower cost. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.