Anode-supported Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) with Ni-yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) anode have been fabricated and studied using H-2-CO syngas fuels. Syngas fuels with different compositions of H-2-CO are supplied and the cell performance is measured at 750 degrees C. A high CO content has caused carbon deposition and crack formation in the Ni-YSZ anode after long-term operation, even though it is diluted with H2O and N-2. However, it was found that a Cu-CeO2 coating on Ni-YSZ can greatly improve the anode stability in syngas by facilitating the water gas shift reaction. The optimized single cell has run in sygas with a composition of 65%H-2-32%CO-3%H2O for 1050h without obvious degradation of its performance. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.