Hydrogen-oxygen (air) fuel cell with nafion and platinum: Calculating overall characteristics,comparing the performance of a cathode with polymeric electrolyte with a hydrophobized cathode with liquid electrolyte

Results of calculating the major overall characteristics of both an individual cathode and the whole hydrogen-oxygen (air) fuel cell with Nafion and platinum are shown. The effect of varying the parameters of both the active layer and the polymeric-electrolyte membrane on the overall characteristics of such a fuel cell is analyzed. The mechanisms of operation of active layers of hydrophobized cathodes and cathodes containing Nafion are compared. These two electrode types demonstrate a qualitative difference in the current generation mechanisms. As a result, the current in cathodes with Nafion increases more actively with the increase in over-potential (in proportion with exp η₀/2], where η₀ is the cathodic overpotential) as compared with the case of hydrophobized cathodes (here the current ～ expη₀/4]). This explains the fact that a fuel cell with Nafion demonstrates so high power characteristics as compared with a fuel cell with hydrophobized electrodes and liquid electrolyte.