A new high-temperature inorganic–organic proton conductor: lanthanum sulfophenyl phosphate

Abstract

Lanthanum sulfophenyl phosphate (LaSPP) was synthesized by m-sulfophenyl phosphonic acid and lanthanum nitrate. UV-Vis spectrophotometry and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy indicate that the desired product was obtained and its elementary composition and typical layered structure were determined by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) proved its typical layered structure and X-ray diffraction spectroscopy indicated its good crystallinity and the interlayer distance of about 15.67 Å , which matches the value obtained by TEM (2.0 nm). Thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis revealed good thermal stability of LaSPP. Proton conductivity of LaSPP was measured at different temperatures and relative humidities (RH), reaching values of 0.123 S cm