In order to understand microstructure formation process of the catalyst layer for a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC), we tried to evaluate the catalyst slurry properties. The catalyst slurries were prepared changing the water/ alcohol ratio of the solvent and their flow curve and packing ability were investigated. In addition the size and the adsorbed amount of the ionomer were also measured. On the other hand, the electrode was fabricated from the prepared slurry and its performance was examined.It was shown that the mean diameter of ionomer measured by dynamic light scattering and the adsorbed amount of ionomer on Pt/C particles decreased with an increase in alcohol ratio of solvent. It was also found that the packing ability of slurry became poorer when the alcohol ratio of solvent increased due to less adsorbed amount of ionomer onto Pt/C particles. From the results of the slurry and the electrode characterization, it was suggested that the adsorbed amount of ionomer and the size of free ionomer could play an important role to improve the PEFC performance.
The effects of tensile speed on the fracture strength of notched plates made from virgin and recycled materials were investigated. The virgin material was short-glass-fiber-reinforced polypropylene (GFPP). GFPP plates, each containing 30% E-glass fiber by weight, were fabricated by injection molding. In addition, pellets of recycled GFPP were kneaded and an injection-molded plate, referred to as the recycled GFPP (R-GFPP) plate, was fabricated from these pellets. The mean fiber lengths of GFPP and R-GFPP were 3.5 and 0.4mm, respectively. The notch-root radii of both the GFPP and the R-GFPP plates were 0.5, 1, and 2mm, while their notch depths ranged from 2 to 5mm. Tensile tests were performed at tensile speeds of 10 3 , 10 2 , 10, 1, and 8.33 × 10 −5 mm/s at a temperature of 23 . It was found that all the notched specimens (GFPP and R-GFPP) failed in a brittle manner at the maximum load. The maximum elastic stress at fracture was determined from the notch-root radius and the time to fracture but was independent of the notch depth. The obtained results could be explained of the basis of the severity of the stress fields near the notch roots of the specimens.
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