Roll-to-roll production of catalyst coated membranes for low-temperature electrolyzers

Park, Janghoon; Kang, Zhenye; Bender, Guido; Ulsh, Michael; Mauger, Scott A.

doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2020.228819

Cited by 41 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…This phenomenon is attributed to the interaction between hydrophilic and hydrophobic domains of the Nafion membrane and solvent molecules. Solvents that are too polar or too nonpolar swell the hydrophilic and hydrophobic domains of the Nafion membrane, respectively, instead of the entire membrane . The mixed solvent with ε of 40 rapidly swells the whole membrane, and hence, the contact angle rapidly decreases with an increase in time.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Dispersion Solvents and Ionomers on the Rheology of Catalyst Inks and Catalyst Layer Structure for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Guo

Yang

et al. 2021

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

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This study investigated the effects of the dielectric constant (ε) of a dispersion solvent and ionomer content on the rheology of graphitized carbon (GC)-supported Pt catalyst ink and the structure of catalyst layers (CLs). The ionomer dispersions and catalyst inks were tested using rheological techniques, zeta (ξ) potential, and dynamic light scattering measurements. Results showed that increases in the solvent ε or ionomer content increased the ξ-potential of catalyst particles in the ink, which reduced the catalyst agglomerate size. Steady-state and oscillation scans showed that the Pt/GC catalyst ink had shear-thinning properties and gel-like behavior. The ink with a solvent ε of 40 tended to be more Newtonian fluid, with low yield stress (σ y ). The ionomer content altered the rheology of the ink by changing the internal interaction of inks. Solvents with ε of 70 and 55 enhanced the adsorption of ionomers onto catalysts, thereby increasing the adhesion between ink particles and reducing the risk of CL cracking. As the ionomer content increased, the catalyst absorbed more ionomers in inks, increasing the fracture toughness of CLs, which reduced the crack width.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Dispersion Solvents and Ionomers on the Rheology of Catalyst Inks and Catalyst Layer Structure for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Guo

Yang

et al. 2021

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

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“…The methodology, described in detail elsewhere, , was adapted from the method originally proposed by Giovambattista et al Unless otherwise noticed, we used ϵ mW–W = 0.35 kcal/mol, ϵ M–W = 0.095 kcal/mol, σ mW–W = 3.56 Å, and σ M–W = 4.0 Å, and the rest of the parameters set equal to those corresponding to mW . These values give contact angles θ Am = 36° and θ mW = 80° for the pure liquids, in line with experimental reports for methanol and water on different hydrophobic materials, , representing a mild type of hydrophobicity (θ mW–W < 90°). In section , the role of the surface interaction on the partition coefficient is analyzed, for which purpose we have varied ϵ mW–W over a range from 0.05 to 0.35 kcal/mol, which translates into a contact angle ranging from 80° to 130°.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 93%

Partition Constant of Binary Mixtures for the Equilibrium between a Bulk and a Confined Phase

2022

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It is well-known that the thermodynamic, kinetic and structural properties of fluids, and in particular of water and its solutions, can be drastically affected in nanospaces. A possible consequence of nanoscale confinement of a solution is the partial segregation of its components. Thereby, confinement in nanoporous materials (NPM) has been proposed as a means for the separation of mixtures. In fact, separation science can take great advantage of NPM due to the tunability of their properties as a function of nanostructure, morphology, pore size, and surface chemistry. Alcohol–water mixtures are in this context among the most relevant systems. However, a quantitative thermodynamic description allowing for the prediction of the segregation capabilities as a function of the material-solution characteristics is missing. In the present study we attempt to fill this vacancy, by contributing a thermodynamic treatment for the calculation of the partition coefficient in confinement. Combining the multilayer adsorption model for binary mixtures with the Young equation, we conclude that the liquid–vapor surface tension and the contact angle of the pure substances can be used to predict the separation ability of a particular material for a given mixture to a semiquantitative extent. Moreover, we develop a Kelvin-type equation that relates the partition coefficient to the radius of the pore, the contact angle, and the liquid–vapor surface tensions of the constituents. To assess the validity of our thermodynamic formulation, coarse grained molecular dynamics simulations were performed on models of alcohol–water mixtures confined in cylindrical pores. To this end, a coarse-grained amphiphilic molecule was parametrized to be used in conjunction with the mW potential for water. This amphiphilic model reproduces some of the properties of methanol such as enthalpy of vaporization and liquid–vapor surface tension, and the minimum of the excess enthalpy for the aqueous solution. The partition coefficient turns out to be highly dependent on the molar fraction, on the interaction between the components and the confining matrix, and on the radius of the pore. A remarkable agreement between the theory and the simulations is found for pores of radius larger than 15 Å.

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“…Use of catalyst is essential to ensure that the electrolytic reactions at both the anode and the cathode occur at practical rates. 21,22 For this purpose, the catalyst or membrane layer is coated either (a) directly on the membrane or catalyst layer surface, respectively, [23][24][25] or (b) on the porous gas diffusion electrodes (i.e., carbon paper/cloth or metal supports like Ti mesh or sintered microporous Ti). 24,26,27 Beside catalyst, the practical applicability of electrolyzers in hydrogen production depends upon the cost as well as the chemical stability, ionic conductivity and gas-barrier properties of the membrane.…”

Section: Brief Aspects Of Catalysts and Membranes In Wementioning

confidence: 99%

Structures and properties of polymers in ion exchange membranes for hydrogen generation by water electrolysis

Gohil

Dutta

2021

Polymers for Advanced Techs

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Water electrolysis (WE) is an electrochemical process that splits water and forms hydrogen and oxygen, in presence of catalyst. This is a rapidly developing technology owing to its extreme importance in the generation of hydrogen. Membrane-based WE involves the use of anion exchange, proton exchange and bipolar membranes, among which the anion exchange membrane-based WE technology is in the most advanced stage, followed by the proton exchange membrane-based WE. While, the bipolar membrane-based WE is the most nascent technology. Among the different categories of membranes used, polymer-based membranes are the most acceptable ones. It is evident that the structure and properties of the polymers that constitute a membrane play the most important role in determining its applicability in WE application. Keeping this in mind, this review is dedicatedly focused on the different polymers that have been majorly used so far in fabrication of anion exchange, proton exchange, and bipolar membranes for WE, and exclusively analyzes the influence imparted by the structure and properties of the involved polymers on the final performance of the membranes.

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Roll-to-roll production of catalyst coated membranes for low-temperature electrolyzers

Cited by 41 publications

References 34 publications

Effect of Dispersion Solvents and Ionomers on the Rheology of Catalyst Inks and Catalyst Layer Structure for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Effect of Dispersion Solvents and Ionomers on the Rheology of Catalyst Inks and Catalyst Layer Structure for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Partition Constant of Binary Mixtures for the Equilibrium between a Bulk and a Confined Phase

Structures and properties of polymers in ion exchange membranes for hydrogen generation by water electrolysis

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