Green synthesis of faujasite-La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3-δ mineral nanocomposite membrane for low temperature advanced fuel cells

In this study, self-supporting mesoporous faujasite was prepared by a facile and environment-friendly process mainly using solid waste discharged coal fly ash. The obtained mesoporous faujasite with a large specific surface area (SSA) composited with La_0.6Sr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O_3-δ (LSCF) is used as an electrolyte membrane for the application of low-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (LTSOFC). With the increase of SSA of faujasite from 128.3 to 286.8 m² g^?1, the open circuit voltage of fuel cell based on faujasite-LSCF electrolyte raises from 0.90 to 0.98 V and the maximum power density also increases from 161 to 286 mW cm^?2 at 600 °C. It is found that the SSA parameter of faujasite plays an important role of tuning the electrical properties of the composite due to the strong correlation of LSCF nanoparticle dispersion degree on mesoporous faujasite. EIS results have confirmed that the faujasite-LSCF composite provides fast ionic channels for protons and inhibits electron long-range transfer between LSCF particles. This work shows the promising application of faujasite-LSCF composite synthesized by low-cost and environmental-friendly methods in the field of LTSOFC.