Planar solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are composites consisting of porous and dense functional layers as electrodes and electrolytes, respectively. Because of the thermo-elastic mismatch between the individual layers, residual stresses develop during manufacturing and cause unconstrained cells to warp. The addition of alumina decreases the thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) of the NiO and yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) anode-support material. Correspondingly, the lower TECs have flattened the half cells during fabrication. In addition, the residual stress at room temperature (RT) for samples with more than 4 wt% alumina is only 20% of the residual stress of the samples without alumina, at approximately 100 MPa. The effects of Al(2)O(3) on the curvature, Young's modulus, TEC and residual stress of the SOFC with (NiO-YSZ)(1-x)(Al(2)O(3))(x) (x = 1-5 wt%) anode support are discussed in this work. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.