Fabrication and Characterization of CuxCe1-xO2-δ Nanostructured Anode Material for SOFC Applications by using Mechanochemical Technique

Abstract

Solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) works by converting chemical energy into electrical energy
due to reforming, and it is one of the promising alternative sources of energy for the
future. In the present work, emphasis was given on increasing the electronic conductivity of anode material for SOFC. The Cu0.5Ce0.5O2-δ was prepared by mechanochemical (ball milling) route, with and without pore former. The effect of pore former on the electrical and structural characterization was studied in detail, and found that the Cu0.5Ce0.5O2-δ ceramic anode prepared by using pore former is more effective from structural and electrical points of view. The crystallite size is 58 nanoscales and DC conductivity after reduction is 9.50 ×10-1 Scm-2. Thus, the Cu0.5Ce0.5O2-δ prepared by ball milling using pore former technique could be an emerging potential anode material for SOFC.