Anodes for the direct utilization of methane in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) are developed by ion impregnation of the electronic conducting and porous Ni electrode with oxygen ion conducting Gd-doped CeO2 (GDC) phase. GDC-impregnated Ni anode was found to be very stable when exposed to weakly humidified (similar to 3% H2O) methane under open circuit at 800 degrees C, as compared to pure Ni and Ni/GDC current anodes. The stability of GDC-impregnated Ni in wet methane was further improved when an anodic current load of 20 mA cm(-2) was applied. The results indicate that GDC-impregnated Ni-based anodes could be potentially used for the direct utilization of natural gas fuel in SOFC. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.