Abstract
In the present work, a series of Nd2±xZr2∓xO7±x/2 (−0.2≤x≤0.4) was prepared by self assisted gel-combution method followed by high temperature sintering at 1673 K. Thorough structural characterizations were done by X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopic techniques. The nominal compositions Nd1.6Zr2.4O7.2 and Nd1.8Zr2.2O7.1 were found to possess single-phasic pyrochlore structure whereas Nd2.0Zr2.0O7 and Nd2.2Zr1.8O6.9 consisted of a pyrochlore phase and a small amount of hexagonal Nd2O3 as an impurity phase. Electrical behavior of the samples was examined by AC impedance analysis. Even though the activation energies of all the samples are not very different, a high pre-exponential factor for the Nd1.6Zr2.4O7.2 composition resulted in high ionic conductivity (3.37 × 10−3 Scm−1 at 773 K). This high ionic conductivity value makes it a superior candidate as an electrolyte material for SOFC applications.
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