A high-efficient and low-consumption nanoimprint method to prepare large-area and high-quality Nafion array for the ordered MEA of fuel cell

Li, Yali; Wen, Qinglin; Qin, Jian‐Zhong; Zou, Siyi; Ning, Fandi; Bai, Chuang; Pan, Saifei; Jin, Hanqing; Xu, Pengpeng; Shen, Min; Song, Yujiang; Zhou, Xiaochun

doi:10.1016/j.cej.2022.138722

Cited by 20 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 82 publications

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“…Currently, although there are many ways to produce CCMs with ordered or thin CLs, most of them are limited by slow preparation rate, high cost, small size, and high complexity. [9,10,12] These methods do not meet the demand for larger CCMs for full sized fuel cells and greatly limits the industrial application of ordered or thin CCMs. UUCCMs provide a promsing strategy for the design of CCMs with high quality, high rate, large area, and low cost.…”

Section: Growth Mechanism and Control Over Pt/pd Nncsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[5] Such an ordered CL is expected to intensify the mass transfer of proton, electron, and gas, as well as water. To date, carbon nanotube arrays, [6] TiO 2 -based arrays, [7] Ptbased arrays, [8] Nafion arrays, [9] and conductive polymer nanowire arrays [10] have been employed to fabricate ordered CLs. Significant progress has been achieved in previous studies, yet researchers still confront the dilemma of thick CLs (most ≈2 µm), complicated fabrication route, and the loss of structural ordering during decal or hot-pressing process.In parallel, Debe and his coworkers pioneered nanostructured thin-film (NSTF) CLs with a typical thickness of about 250 nm and a Pt loading of 100 µg cm −2 by sputtering Pt or Pt alloy nanoparticles on organic whisker arrays.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Ultrathin Ultralow‐Platinum Catalyst Coated Membrane for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Qin

Liu

Han

et al. 2023

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in the range of 0.2-0.4 mg cm −2 [3] as well as a thick catalyst layer (CL) of 5-10 µm at cathode, [4] which brings in a sinuous and lengthy pathway and thus jeopardizing the mass transfer of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR).Aimed to reduce the thickness and the Pt loading of the cathodic catalyst layer in CCMs while maintaining or improving the activity, much endeavor has been devoted to the investigation of CCMs with ordered or thin CLs. Middelman et al. first proposed an ordered CL model comprised of thin ionomer film covering Pt nanoparticles supported on electronic conductor arrays, perpendicular to membrane. [5] Such an ordered CL is expected to intensify the mass transfer of proton, electron, and gas, as well as water. To date, carbon nanotube arrays, [6] TiO 2 -based arrays, [7] Ptbased arrays, [8] Nafion arrays, [9] and conductive polymer nanowire arrays [10] have been employed to fabricate ordered CLs. Significant progress has been achieved in previous studies, yet researchers still confront the dilemma of thick CLs (most ≈2 µm), complicated fabrication route, and the loss of structural ordering during decal or hot-pressing process.In parallel, Debe and his coworkers pioneered nanostructured thin-film (NSTF) CLs with a typical thickness of about 250 nm and a Pt loading of 100 µg cm −2 by sputtering Pt or Pt alloy nanoparticles on organic whisker arrays. [11] Qi and coworkers recently reported interesting Pt nanotrough thin CLs with a thickness of about 300 nm and a Pt loading of 42 µg cm −2 at cathode. [12] We previously developed a photo-driven approach to fabricate CCMs composed of a monolayer of dendritic Pt spherical crowns on membrane with a thickness of 59 nm at a cathodic Pt loading of 53 µg cm −2 . [13] Ostroverkh et al. prepared thin-film Pt catalysts with ultra-low metal loadings ranging from 1 to 200 µg cm −2 by magnetron sputtering onto carbon-based substrates. [14] Overall, thin CCMs have all successfully omitted additive ionomer and the poisoning of the CLs, and exhibit a high mass peak power density in the range of 10.4-22.4 W mg Pt,Cathode−1 even at a low electrochemically specific area (ECSA) value of 5.1-12.9 m 2 g Pt −1. It is clear that thin CCMs represent a highly promising new research direction.In this study, we develop a simple proton-initiated fabrication approach for the preparation of thin CCMs with a high ECSA to further improve the utilization of Pt. Rice spike-like Pd Catalyst coated membrane (CCM) is the core component of proton exchange membrane fuel cells and is routinely fabricated by spraying Pt/C slurries onto membrane, resulting in low activity and thick catalyst layer (CL, 5-10 µm) with an unaffordable Pt loading of 0.2-0.4 mg cm −2 and a large mass transfer resistance at cathode. Highly active ultrathin ultralow-Pt CL (UUCL) is urgently required, but remains rare. Herein, wet-chemical direct growth of UUCLs on both sides of membrane to achieve integrated ultrathin ultralow-Pt catalyst coated membranes (UUCCMs) with a cathodic CL thickness of 79.7 ± 15.0 nm and a P...

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Section: Growth Mechanism and Control Over Pt/pd Nncsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

Ultrathin Ultralow‐Platinum Catalyst Coated Membrane for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Qin

Liu

Han

et al. 2023

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“…Recently, considerable advances have been achieved in the design of patterned Nafion membranes that cover structures at the nanometer, micrometer, and multilevel scales. − A well-designed structure can effectively increase the electrochemical active surface area (ECSA) and reduce the ohmic resistance to improve the performance of PEMFCs by enlarging the catalyst utilization and active sites for reaction in the membrane/electrode interface when incorporated into the MEA. ,− Additionally, the ordered structure can effectively facilitate proton and mass transports to improve water management. ,, Various effective methods have been identified for constructing diverse structures on membranes. For instance, direct patterning on the membrane surface using e-beam lithography, the plasma-etch technique, , electrospinning or electrospray can fabricate uniformly distributed rough nanostructures or microstructures on the membrane.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…28,30−32 Additionally, the ordered structure can effectively facilitate proton and mass transports to improve water management. 14,30,34 Various effective methods have been identified for constructing diverse structures on membranes. For instance, direct patterning on the membrane surface using e-beam lithography, 25 the plasma-etch technique, 29,35 electrospinning or electrospray 36 can fabricate uniformly distributed rough nanostructures or microstructures on the membrane.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiscale Architectured Nafion Membrane Derived from Lotus Leaf for Fuel Cell Applications

Wen

Zou

et al. 2023

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

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Hierarchically patterned proton-exchange membranes (PEMs) have the potential to significantly increase the specific surface area, thus improving the catalyst utilization rate and performance of proton-exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). In this study, we are inspired by the unique hierarchical structure of the lotus leaf and proposed a simple three-step strategy to prepare a multiscale structured PEM. Using the multilevel structure of the natural lotus leaf as the original template, and after structural imprinting, hot-pressing, and plasma-etching steps, we successfully constructed a multiscale structured PEM with a microscale pillar-like structure and a nanoscale needle-like structure. When applied in a fuel cell, the multiscale structured PEM resulted in a 1.96-fold increase in discharge performance and a significant improvement in mass transfer compared to the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) with a flat PEM. The multiscale structured PEM has the combined advantage of a nanoscale and a microscale structure, benefiting from the markedly reduced thickness, increased surface area, and improved water management inherited from the multiscale structured lotus leaf’s superhydrophobic characteristic. Using a lotus leaf as a multilevel structure template avoids the complex and time-consuming preparation process required by commonly used multilevel structure templates. Moreover, the remarkable architecture of biological materials can inspire novel and innovative applications in many fields through nature’s wisdom.

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“…The proton-conducting polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) is the major component of a PEMWE and is used as a product gas (O 2 and H 2 ) separator, electrolyte, and support for the cathode- and anode catalyst layers (CLs) [ 7 ]. Therefore, membranes used in PEMWEs must be dimensionally stable; proton conductive; mechanically, chemically, and thermally stable; and have sufficient gas-crossover resistance [ 7 , 8 , 9 ]. In PEMWE operation, the supplied water is decomposed into protons and oxygen in the anode’s Ir-based CL.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of PEM Water Electrolyzer Failure Due to Induced Hydrogen Crossover in Catalyst-Coated PFSA Membranes

Kuhnert

Heidinger

Sandu³

et al. 2023

Membranes

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Polymer electrolyte membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) is a leading candidate for the development of a sustainable hydrogen infrastructure. The heart of a PEMWE cell is represented by the membrane electrode assembly (MEA), which consists of a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) with catalyst layers (CLs), flow fields, and bipolar plates (BPPs). The weakest component of the system is the PEM, as it is prone to chemical and mechanical degradation. Membrane chemical degradation is associated with the formation of hydrogen peroxide due to the crossover of product gases (H2 and O2). In this paper, membrane failure due to H2 crossover was addressed in a membrane-focused accelerated stress test (AST). Asymmetric H2O and gas supply were applied to a test cell in OCV mode at two temperatures (60 °C and 80 °C). Electrochemical characterization at the beginning and at the end of testing revealed a 1.6-fold higher increase in the high-frequency resistance (HFR) at 80 °C. The hydrogen crossover was measured with a micro-GC, and the fluoride emission rate (FER) was monitored during the ASTs. A direct correlation between the FER and H2 crossover was identified, and accelerated membrane degradation at higher temperatures was detected.

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A high-efficient and low-consumption nanoimprint method to prepare large-area and high-quality Nafion array for the ordered MEA of fuel cell

Cited by 20 publications

References 82 publications

Ultrathin Ultralow‐Platinum Catalyst Coated Membrane for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Ultrathin Ultralow‐Platinum Catalyst Coated Membrane for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Multiscale Architectured Nafion Membrane Derived from Lotus Leaf for Fuel Cell Applications

Analysis of PEM Water Electrolyzer Failure Due to Induced Hydrogen Crossover in Catalyst-Coated PFSA Membranes

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