Efficient SWCNT-Based Anode for DMFC Applications

Drillet, Jean‐François; Bueb, H.; Dittmeyer, Roland; Dettlaff‐Weglikowska, Urszula; Roth, S.

doi:10.1149/1.3196246

Cited by 13 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…Similarly, Dillert et al [14] found improved performance with oxidized SWCNTs as support material. On the other hand, Cui et al [15] showed that PtRu supported on MWCNTs provide 33% better power density than a commercial catalyst.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

“…Therefore, with the aim of enhancing activity and stability of direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) electrodes, different carbon supports have been investigated such as single-walled (SW-) and multiwalled (MW-) carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphene, carbon nanofibers (CNFs), fullerenes, carbon nanohorns and mesoporous carbon [8][9][10][11][12]. Specifically CNTs [13][14][15] and CNFs [16][17][18] have been studied as catalysts supports because of their outstanding conductivity, thermal and mechanical stability [19].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Enhanced performance of a silicon microfabricated direct methanol fuel cell with PtRu catalysts supported on few-walled carbon nanotubes

Borghei

Scotti

Kanninen

et al. 2014

Energy

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Silicon micro fuel cells (Si-MFCs) are promising power supplies for microelectronic applications, however their development is still at early stages compared to the conventional proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). There are not many published reports on the durability of Si-MFCs and those available only projected the life-time of standard Vulcan based catalysts. However, the limited durability resulting from carbon corrosion is one of the crucial issues in fuel cells. In this study, Si-MFC with an integrated silicon nanograss diffusion layer is used for the direct methanol fuel cell investigations. The long-term (3-day) performance of PtRu catalysts supported on different carbon supports, namely Vulcan, Graphitized carbon nanofibers (GNFs) and Few-walled carbon nanotubes (FWCNTs), was studied. PtRu-FWCNTs and PtRu-GNFs exhibited respectively 471% 2 (20.0 mW cm -2 ) and 274% (13.1 mW cm -2 ) power density enhancements compared to PtRu-Vulcan (3.5 mW cm -2 ). After 3-day durability measurements, power density stayed at 72, 68 and 91% of the initial value, respectively for PtRu-FWCNTs, PtRu-GNFs and PtRu-Vulcan. To evaluate the influence of carbon supports as well as the distribution and the size of the nanoparticles on the overall performance of Si-MFCs, further characterizations with Raman, BET, XRD, SEM and TEM were performed.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhanced performance of a silicon microfabricated direct methanol fuel cell with PtRu catalysts supported on few-walled carbon nanotubes

Borghei

Scotti

Kanninen

et al. 2014

Energy

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“…However, among those, the carbon nanofibers were the most studied in DMFC. Drillet et al [30] analyzed the performance of SWCNTs, produced by the arc-discharge method, as catalyst support in the anode side of fuel cell. They used hot air (300 C) or concentrated nitric acid as activation treatments to promote the catalyst anchoring.…”

Section: Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carbon Materials for Fuel Cells

Bruno

Viva

2013

Direct Alcohol Fuel Cells

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Carbon materials are fundamental for the manufacturing of fuel cells. Several fuel cell components are made entirely of carbon in a graphitic form. In the present chapter, an overview of the different fuel cell carbon components and the materials used in their preparation will be presented. Novel approaches in the synthetic method, in order to impart desired properties, and in the manufacturing of the components will be shown. Also, relevant results on the latest research conducted will be discussed.

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“…Although many of these alternative supports have been tested in DMFC [103][104][105][106][107][108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115][116][117], their long-term stability in DMFC conditions has not been studied widely though it is a significant reason for their research [33,118]. In light of this, Vulcan-, GNF-and FWCNT-PtRu were tested for a period of 3 days in a micro-DMFC anode in Publication IV.…”

Section: The Role Of Carbon Supportmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, this has not been widely investigated in the literature (Publications II, III and IV) [33,107,117] as most studies of different catalyst supports in a DMFC only report the performance [103][104][105][106][108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115][116]. In Publication IV, three…”

Section: Carbon Supportsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicon nanograss as micro fuel cell gas diffusion layer

et al. 2010

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Direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC) produce electrical energy directly from chemical energy. They are a promising candidate for power sources of portable devices due to the high energy density of methanol and the quick recharging procedure by fuel insertion. However, the problem areas of the DMFC are the slow electro-oxidation of methanol and the permeated methanol reacting at the cathode. New catalysts are constantly searched but they are often tested only for catalytic activity and the DMFC testing is omitted even though the catalyst layer (CL) structure has a large impact on the performance. Miniaturization of the system is also necessary for portable applications. Silicon etching can be used to fabricate small structures for fuel cells replacing or enhancing the functions of laboratory-scale components.In the first part of this thesis, new catalysts for the DMFC are studied with the emphasis on the CL structure. Different carbon supports for the anode were studied: standard carbon black and alternative few-walled carbon nanotubes (FWCNT) and graphitized carbon nanofiber (GNF). The alternative supports showed better DMFC performance but their stability was lower than with carbon black. However, the CL formed with GNF showed a very porous structure enhancing the mass transfer, so that higher binder content could be used improving the stability to the level of carbon black and the performance by 30%. The FWCNTs were also investigated as a platform for enzymatic methanol oxidation by studying the electrochemical properties of an immobilized cofactor pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ). A large amount of PQQ was adsorbed having a strong redox response and good stability in a wide pH window. For the cathode, a methanol-tolerant, Pt-free nitrogen-doped FWCNTs were tested in an alkaline DMFC as such testing is not often made. Its performance was remarkably 4 times better than with Pt when synthetic air was used as the oxidant.In the second part of thesis, an integrated gas diffusion layer (GDL) consisting of Si nanoneedles (nanograss) was tested in a micro fuel cell (MFC). The layer functioned properly at low current densities. For high power applications, a standard carbon cloth GDL was tested with the nanograss as a contact surface reducing the resistance between the GDL and the flow field. The use of the nanograss improved the MFC performance and stability. Finally, the MFCs were used as a catalyst testing platform and the results were compared with a similar test in a laboratory-scale DMFC. The results varied showing that the DMFC components also have a large impact on catalyst testing.Keywords direct methanol fuel cell, carbon nanomaterials, micro fuel cells, catalyst layer Tiivistelmä Suorametanolipolttokennot (SMPK) tuottavat sähköenergiaa suoraan kemiallisesta energiasta. Ne ovat lupaava vaihtoehto kannettavien laitteiden voimanlähteeksi, koska metanolilla on korkea energiatiheys ja lataaminen tapahtuu nopeasti polttoainelisäyksellä. SMPK:lla on kuitenkin rajoitteina metanolin hidas hapetusreaktio ja katodi...

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Efficient SWCNT-Based Anode for DMFC Applications

Cited by 13 publications

References 20 publications

Enhanced performance of a silicon microfabricated direct methanol fuel cell with PtRu catalysts supported on few-walled carbon nanotubes

Enhanced performance of a silicon microfabricated direct methanol fuel cell with PtRu catalysts supported on few-walled carbon nanotubes

Carbon Materials for Fuel Cells

Silicon nanograss as micro fuel cell gas diffusion layer

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