A facile preparation method of surface patterned polymer electrolyte membranes for fuel cell applications

Koh, Jong Kwan; Jeon, Yukwon; Cho, Yong Il; Kim, Jong Hak; Shul, Yong Gun

doi:10.1039/c4ta00674g

Cited by 63 publications

(62 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…This became in particular evident using electrodes with low Pt-loading, where at high current densities a strong deviation was observed between a CCM and DMD sample in the iR-free representation. In recent literature new concepts with patterned membranes revealed that in spite of identical membrane thickness a modified catalystemembrane interface can strongly improve the cell performance [28,29]. These observations are in good agreement with the observed characteristics of DMD fuel cells.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 70%

Water management in novel direct membrane deposition fuel cells under low humidification

Breitwieser

Moroni

Schock

et al. 2016

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

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Direct membrane depositionNeutron radiography Water management Back diffusion a b s t r a c t Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) fabricated by direct membrane deposition (DMD) were shown to work even at dry conditions without significant deterioration of the membrane resistance. Here, in situ neutron radiography is used to investigate the water management in those fuel cells to uncover the phenomena that lead to the robust operation under low humidification. A constant level of humidification within the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) of a DMD fuel cell is observed even under dry anode operation and 15% relative humidity on the cathode side. This proves a pronounced back diffusion of generated water from the cathode side to the anode side through the thin deposited membrane layer. Over the entire range of polarization curves a very high similarity of the water evolution in anode and cathode flow fields is found in spite of different humidification levels. It is shown that the power density of directly deposited membranes in contrast to a 50 mm thick N-112 membrane is only marginally affected by dry operation conditions. Water profiles in through-plane direction of the MEA reveal that the water content in the DMD fuel cell remains steady even at high current densities. This is in contrast to the N-112 reference fuel cell which shows a strong increase in membrane resistance and a reduced MEA water content with raising current densities. Thus this new MEA fabrication technique has a promising perspective, since dry operation conditions are highly requested in order to reduce fuel cell system costs.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 70%

Water management in novel direct membrane deposition fuel cells under low humidification

Breitwieser

Moroni

Schock

et al. 2016

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

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“…Conventional PEMFC architectures formed by sandwiching Nafion membranes and Pt‐based catalyst layers utilize these approaches for restructuring the MEA via membrane or catalyst layer patterning, and for the formation of ultra‐thin catalyst layers. The membrane patterning approach has been demonstrated with membrane laser ablation , plasma modification in Ar, H 2 ‐He, Ar‐O 2 , and Ar‐SF 6 environments , and lithographic patterning . Plasma deposited Pt gas diffusion electrodes and catalyst coated membranes , Pt films in conjunction with restructured membranes , and sputter‐patterned Pt electrodes via a glancing angle deposition approach have also been examined to illustrate the benefits of microfabrication to PEMFC cell construction.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ultra‐low Mass Sputtered and Conventional Catalyst Layers on Plasma‐etched Nafion for PEMFC Applications

Omosebi

Besser

2017

Fuel Cells

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This paper presents performance results for the use of plasma‐etched Nafion membranes to suppress polarization losses in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) configured from 0.1 mg cm−2 conventional Pt/C dispersion and 0.02 mg cm−2 ultra‐thin sputter‐deposited Pt catalyst layers. Four MEA configurations, namely, etched membrane‐conventional electrode, pristine membrane‐conventional electrode, etched membrane‐sputter electrode, and pristine membrane‐sputter electrode cells were explored, and their respective maximum power densities were ∼514.6, 417.9, 170.1 and 138.3 mW cm−2. The results demonstrated that independent of MEA fabrication approach, cells with O2 plasma treated membranes had reduced ohmic resistances and delivered superior performance over their pristine counterparts, validating the utility of membrane etching for achieving improved PEMFC performance.

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“…This was linked to an improved interface between catalyst layers and membrane. [43,47] In previous work, this low R LF-HF was related to strong water Adv. [43,47] In previous work, this low R LF-HF was related to strong water Adv.…”

Section: Beginning Of Test/ End Of Test -Analysismentioning

confidence: 84%

Cerium Oxide Decorated Polymer Nanofibers as Effective Membrane Reinforcement for Durable, High‐Performance Fuel Cells

Breitwieser

Klose

Hartmann

et al. 2016

Advanced Energy Materials

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High‐power, durable composite fuel cell membranes are fabricated here by direct membrane deposition (DMD). Poly(vinylidene fluoride‐co‐hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF‐HFP) nanofibers, decorated with CeO2 nanoparticles are directly electrospun onto gas diffusion electrodes. The nanofiber mesh is impregnated by inkjet‐printed Nafion ionomer dispersion. This results in 12 µm thin multicomponent composite membranes. The nanofibers provide membrane reinforcement, whereas the attached CeO2 nanoparticles promote improved chemical membrane durability due to their radical scavenging properties. In a 100 h accelerated stress test under hot and dry conditions, the reinforced DMD fuel cell shows a more than three times lower voltage decay rate (0.39 mV h−1) compared to a comparably thin Gore membrane (1.36 mV h−1). The maximum power density of the DMD fuel cell drops by 9%, compared to 54% measured for the reference. Impedance spectroscopy reveals that ionic and mass transport resistance of the DMD fuel cell are unaffected by the accelerated stress test. This is in contrast to the reference, where a 90% increase of the mass transport resistance is measured. Energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy reveals that no significant migration of cerium into the catalyst layers occurs during degradation. This proves that the PVDF‐HFP backbone provides strong anchoring of CeO2 in the membrane.

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A facile preparation method of surface patterned polymer electrolyte membranes for fuel cell applications

Abstract: We report a facile universal patterning method that provides well-arrayed patterns of polymer electrolyte membranes with a large electrochemical area using an elastomeric mold. The membrane electrode assembly fabricated with patterned Nafion membrane exhibited a high current density.

Cited by 63 publications

References 42 publications

Water management in novel direct membrane deposition fuel cells under low humidification

Water management in novel direct membrane deposition fuel cells under low humidification

Ultra‐low Mass Sputtered and Conventional Catalyst Layers on Plasma‐etched Nafion for PEMFC Applications

Cerium Oxide Decorated Polymer Nanofibers as Effective Membrane Reinforcement for Durable, High‐Performance Fuel Cells

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