Porous metal supported solid oxide fuel cells (MS-SOFCs) have been engineered with micro-pores and nano-sized catalysts for directly converting chemical energy in ethanol to electricity. The MS-SOFCs developed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory offer advantages of rapid start-up, mechanical ruggedness, high performance, and low-cost materials. A symmetric metal/ceramic scaffold with micro-pore range of 1 to 25 μm has been fabricated using tape-casting and lamination. Select catalysts were infiltrated in the porous electrodes and metal supports by fast infiltration. Continuous cell performance improvement has been achieved by optimization of cell structure, processing temperature and catalyst compositions. The stability of MS-SOFCs has been evaluated during continuous operation for >300 hours. The degradation mechanisms revealed by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and high-resolution scanning electron microscopy techniques will be presented. The effect of impurities such as Cr on the cathode stability has been evaluated at an intermediate operating temperature range of 600 to 700°C. The phase change of praseodymium-oxide oxygen reduction catalysts has been identified at low oxygen pressure (such as nitrogen environment) by in situ high temperature X-ray diffraction.