Abstract
Reducing the operating temperature of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) to 300–600 °C is a great challenge for the development of SOFC. Among the extensive research and development (R&D) efforts that have been done on lowering the operating temperature of SOFCs, nanomaterials have played a critical role in improving ion transportation in electrolytes and facilitating electrochemical catalyzation of the electrodes. This work reviews recent progress in lowering the temperature of SOFCs by using semiconductor-ionic conductor nanomaterial, which is typically a composition of semiconductor and ionic conductor, as a membrane. The historical development, as well as the working mechanism of semiconductor-ionic membrane fuel cell (SIMFC), is discussed. Besides, the development in the application of nanostructured pure ionic conductors, semiconductors, and nanocomposites of semiconductors and ionic conductors as the membrane is highlighted. The method of using nano-structured semiconductor-ionic conductors as a membrane has been proved to successfully exhibit a significant enhancement in the ionic conductivity and power density of SOFCs at low temperatures and provides a new way to develop low-temperature SOFCs.
Highlights
Energy plays a vital role in social development
The development of nano-materials has paved new ways for reducing the operating temperature of SOFCs thanks to the special properties of nanomaterials that are absent in bulk phases
Intensive research on this nanocomposite approach has resulted in ground-breaking technologies: namely, the micro-SOFC, nano-SOFC, and semiconductor-ionic membrane fuel cell (SIMFC)
Summary
Energy plays a vital role in social development. The consumption of traditional fossil fuels (oil, coal, and natural gas) has resulted in severe environmental pollution. With the supply of O2 and fuels like H2 , fuel cells can efficiently convert chemical energy into electricity without the release of any pollutants. As a result, it is considered one of the most ideal clean energy technologies with wide applications [1,2]. A high operating temperature is required, e.g., above 800 ◦ C, to obtain high oxygen-ionic conductivity, e.g., above 0.1 S cm−1 [4] Such high temperature leads to many serious issues, i.e., high cost and insufficient lifespan, which in turn hinders the wide application of SOFCs. decreasing the operating temperature of SOFCs becomes a hotspot issue. It provides a new way to enhance named semiconductor-ionic membrane fuel cells (SIMFCs) [8].
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