Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells

Abstract The absence of intrinsic protons in proton-conducting oxides (PCO) is a significant challenge that limits the proton conductivity of proton-conducting perovskites, such as Y-doped BaMO3 (M = Zr, Ce), in proton ceramic fuel cells exhibit low conductivity (10-3 to 10-2 S cm-1 at 600 °C). Here...

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Main Authors: Atif Nazar, Bushra Bibi, Chenjie Lou, Fan Yang, Fan Qi, Yifu Jing, Shukui Li, Rizwan Raza, Muhammad Yousaf, Muhammad Afzal, Kashif Nazar, Mingxue Tang, Liangdong Fan, Bin Zhu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-04-01
Series:Communications Chemistry
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01488-0
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author Atif Nazar
Bushra Bibi
Chenjie Lou
Fan Yang
Fan Qi
Yifu Jing
Shukui Li
Rizwan Raza
Muhammad Yousaf
Muhammad Afzal
Kashif Nazar
Mingxue Tang
Liangdong Fan
Bin Zhu
author_facet Atif Nazar
Bushra Bibi
Chenjie Lou
Fan Yang
Fan Qi
Yifu Jing
Shukui Li
Rizwan Raza
Muhammad Yousaf
Muhammad Afzal
Kashif Nazar
Mingxue Tang
Liangdong Fan
Bin Zhu
author_sort Atif Nazar
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The absence of intrinsic protons in proton-conducting oxides (PCO) is a significant challenge that limits the proton conductivity of proton-conducting perovskites, such as Y-doped BaMO3 (M = Zr, Ce), in proton ceramic fuel cells exhibit low conductivity (10-3 to 10-2 S cm-1 at 600 °C). Herein, we introduce a photo-assisted synthesis method for incorporating protons into Al-doped ceria (AlxCe1-xO2-δ, x = 0.2; M-ACO), leveraging the open cubic fluorite structure and photo-activated radical reactions. Specifically, photon-generated hydroxyl reactive $$\left({{{\rm{OH}}}}^{{{\bullet }}}\right)$$ OH ∙ and superoxide ( $${{{\rm{O}}}}_{2}^{{{\bullet }}-}$$ O 2 ∙ − ) Radicals are generated and interact with the ACO crystal lattice, facilitating proton incorporation and resulting in the synthesis of native-proton-type PCO. This process results in a protonated (H-ACO) with a high proton conductivity of 0.14 S cm-1 and exceptional power density of 922 mW cm-2 at 500 °C. This versatile synthesis methodology offers broader development of advanced PCO for energy-related applications.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2399-3669
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publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
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series Communications Chemistry
spelling doaj-art-e24498b044254369a2111e453f2581d82025-08-20T03:37:20ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Chemistry2399-36692025-04-018111310.1038/s42004-025-01488-0Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cellsAtif Nazar0Bushra Bibi1Chenjie Lou2Fan Yang3Fan Qi4Yifu Jing5Shukui Li6Rizwan Raza7Muhammad Yousaf8Muhammad Afzal9Kashif Nazar10Mingxue Tang11Liangdong Fan12Bin Zhu13Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Solar Energy Science and Technology/Energy Storage joint Research Center, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast UniversityJiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Solar Energy Science and Technology/Energy Storage joint Research Center, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast UniversityCenter for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced ResearchJiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Solar Energy Science and Technology/Energy Storage joint Research Center, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast UniversityJiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Solar Energy Science and Technology/Energy Storage joint Research Center, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast UniversityDepartment of Material Science, Shenzhen MSU-BIT UniversityDepartment of Material Science, Shenzhen MSU-BIT UniversityDepartment of Physics, COMSATS University Islamabad, Lahore CampusCollege of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen UniversityDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of South CarolinaDepartment of Electrical Engineering, COMSATS University Islamabad, Lahore CampusCenter for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced ResearchDepartment of New Energy Science and Technology, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen UniversityJiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Solar Energy Science and Technology/Energy Storage joint Research Center, School of Energy and Environment, Southeast UniversityAbstract The absence of intrinsic protons in proton-conducting oxides (PCO) is a significant challenge that limits the proton conductivity of proton-conducting perovskites, such as Y-doped BaMO3 (M = Zr, Ce), in proton ceramic fuel cells exhibit low conductivity (10-3 to 10-2 S cm-1 at 600 °C). Herein, we introduce a photo-assisted synthesis method for incorporating protons into Al-doped ceria (AlxCe1-xO2-δ, x = 0.2; M-ACO), leveraging the open cubic fluorite structure and photo-activated radical reactions. Specifically, photon-generated hydroxyl reactive $$\left({{{\rm{OH}}}}^{{{\bullet }}}\right)$$ OH ∙ and superoxide ( $${{{\rm{O}}}}_{2}^{{{\bullet }}-}$$ O 2 ∙ − ) Radicals are generated and interact with the ACO crystal lattice, facilitating proton incorporation and resulting in the synthesis of native-proton-type PCO. This process results in a protonated (H-ACO) with a high proton conductivity of 0.14 S cm-1 and exceptional power density of 922 mW cm-2 at 500 °C. This versatile synthesis methodology offers broader development of advanced PCO for energy-related applications.https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01488-0
spellingShingle Atif Nazar
Bushra Bibi
Chenjie Lou
Fan Yang
Fan Qi
Yifu Jing
Shukui Li
Rizwan Raza
Muhammad Yousaf
Muhammad Afzal
Kashif Nazar
Mingxue Tang
Liangdong Fan
Bin Zhu
Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells
Communications Chemistry
title Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells
title_full Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells
title_fullStr Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells
title_full_unstemmed Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells
title_short Photo-assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells
title_sort photo assisted synthesis of protonated oxides for fuel cells
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01488-0
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