The University of Pennsylvania will address unresolved anode degradation issues via Atomic Layer Deposition to form oxide overlayers on Ni-YSZ cermet anodes to suppress whisker formation, reduce coarsening, and suppress oxidation of the reduced Ni. Specific objectives will be to explore and optimize the use of ultra-thin films of oxide modifiers such as BaO and reducible perovskites that are able to exsolve catalytic metal nanoparticles to enhance the coking tolerance of Ni-based anodes and demonstrate the use of ultra-thin perovskite layers to stabilize the Ni surface area and preserve three-phase boundary sites. Initial work will focus on identifying materials that improve the properties of Ni-cermet anodes on button cells and then applying the most promising materials to larger cells, including those of tubular design, to demonstrate that the methods can be applied to the development of commercial systems.