The SiO2-Nafion/sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) composite membranes are fabricated by using the simple mechanical ball-milling process to combine SiO2 glass powders with small portion of Nafion, in which SiO2 glass powders are prepared by modified sol-gel progress and Nafion is embedded in situ into a highly porous silica network. The morphology, thermal and mechanical properties, pore structure, proton conductivity and fuel cell performance of the SiO2-Nafion/SPEEK composite membranes are investigated. The poor miscibility of Nafion and sulfonated aromatic polymer is solved by fixing Nafion into SiO2 glass powders. The composite membranes perform well even if the proportion of inorganic component in membranes is as high as 40 wt.%. A maximum of proton conductivity, 0.018 S cm(-1), is obtained from the membrane of 4(8Si-2N)/6SPEEK at 80 degrees C and 90% relative humidity, which is owing to its enhanced hygroscopicity and highly dispersed Nafion clusters. In addition, a single fuel cell equipped with the composite membrane shows a peak power density of 589.2 mW cm(-2) at 70 degrees C. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.