A benzoate coprecipitation route for synthesizing nanocrystalline GDC powder with lowered sintering temperature

Electrolyte powders with low sintering temperature and high-ionic conductivity can considerably facilitate the fabrication performance of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). Gadolinia-doped ceria (GDC) is a promising electrolyte for developing intermediate- low-temperature (IT LT) SOFCs. However, conventional GDC usually above 1200 °C unless additives are used. In this work, nanocrystalline powder GDC, (10 mol% Gd dopant, 0.1 Ce 0 . 9 O 1.95 ) low-sintering has been synthesized using ammonium benzoate as novel, environmentally friendly cost-effective precursor/precipitant. The (termed washed- non-washed samples) were calcined at relatively 500 6 h. Physicochemical characteristics determined thermal analysis (TG/DTA), Raman spectroscopy, FT-IR, SEM/EDX, XRD, nitrogen absorptiometry, dilatometry. Dilatometry showed that newly samples (washed routes) start to shrink temperatures 600 (respectively), reaching their maximum rate 650 750 °C. Sintering pelletized substrates onset commercial (950 °C) h, densification samples, obtaining 97.48 98.43% respectively, relative theoretical density. electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) pellets sintered 950 total electrical 3.83 × 10 −2 5.90 S cm −1 (under air atmosphere respectively. This first report synthesis, where considerable improvement in sinterability product observed without addition.