Novel phosphonated polymer without anhydride formation for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells(PEMFCs)are regarded as one of the most promising clean energy technology because of their high energy density,silent emission-free operation,and wide applications[1].Recently,anion exchange membrane fuel cells(AEMFCs)has emerged as an alternative to PEMFCs.     

Silica-facilitated proton transfer for high-temperature proton-exchange membrane fuel cells

High-temperature proton-exchange membrane fuel cells (HT-PEMFCs) have shown a broad prospect of applications due to the enhanced reaction kinetics and simplifie...     

质子交换膜燃料电池Pt纳米线电催化剂研究现状

质子交换膜燃料电池(PEMFC)能直接将化学能转换为电能,具有能量转换效率高、环境友好、启动快等优点.其中电催化剂是决定PEMFC性能、寿命及成本的关键材料之一.目前所采用的Pt催化剂成本较高,是阻碍其商业化的主要因素.而Pt纳米线电催化剂的Pt利用率和催化剂活性高,抗CO毒性以及耐久性好.本文综述了Pt纳米线电催化剂的制备及其电化学催化性能的研究现状.     

A novel multistep dip-coating method for the fabrication of anode-supported microtubular solid oxide fuel cells

A novel multistep dip-coating method was developed and successfully applied to the fabrication of anode-supported microtubular solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) using carbon rods as combustible cores. The fabricated microtubular SOFCs consisted of Ni-yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), YSZ, strontium-doped lanthanum manganite (LSM)–YSZ, and LSM as the anode, electrolyte, cathode, and cathode current collector materials, respectively. To investigate the role of anode porosity on cell performance, two types of anode supports were prepared: one without a pore former and the other with a 10 wt.% graphite pore former. The microstructural features of the microtubular SOFCs were examined using scanning electron microscope images whereas the electrochemical performance was characterized by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements as well as I–V characteristic curves. The results showed that the method used is a simple and low-cost alternative to conventional methods for the fabrication of microtubular SOFCs. We found that the anode porosity played an important role in improving the overall performance of the microtubular SOFC by reducing the concentration polarization.     

通过溅射与退火制备的用于固体氧化物燃料电池的氧化钆掺杂氧化铈电解质隔层

采用溅射或溅射与退火相结合的方法制备了一系列氧化钆掺杂的氧化铈（GDC）隔层,并考察了其对固体氧化燃料电池性能的影响. 结果表明,200 ℃下溅射获得了立方结构氧化钆掺杂的氧化铈均匀薄膜,在900-1100 ℃范围内的退火处理使得GDC薄膜致密,从而有效阻止了氧化钇掺杂的氧化锆电解质与阴极材料之间的反应,大幅度提高了电池的电化学性能.     

Highly durable proton exchange membranes for low temperature fuel cells

A novel method has been proposed to fabricate Nafion/poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) composite proton exchange membranes (PEMs) with high durability and high chemical stability. In this method, Nafion ionomers were first converted into the Na(+) form, they were then fixed on PTFE frame micropores, and then the polymer was heat-treated at 270 degrees C. The chemical stability tests of the novel composite PEMs by Fenton's reagent demonstrate the significant improvement in the chemical durability. The Nafion/PTFE composite PEMs also show an excellent physical stability, and its RH-generated stress is 0.6 MPa at 25 RH% and 90 degrees C, substantially smaller than 3.1 MPa for pure Nafion membrane under the same conditions. In an in situ accelerating RH cyclic experiment, the degradation in the open circuit voltage (OCV) of the fuel cell assembled with the novel composite PEMs is 3.3 mV/h, significantly lower than 13.2 mV/h for a fuel cell assembled with the commercial Nafion membrane.     

X-ray absorption spectroscopic studies on solid oxide fuel cells and proton-conducting ceramic fuel cells

X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is one of the best techniques to obtain the information on the electronic and local structures of materials. In the last few decades, XAS becomes a common analytical technique for the investigation of solid oxide fuel cells and proton-conducting ceramic fuel cells. In particular, operando and/or advanced XAS measurements can be recently available with the increased accessibility of synchrotron radiation. In this article, recent trends of solid oxide fuel cell and proton-conducting ceramic fuel cell researches using XAS are overviewed.     

Mass spectrometric analysis of ceramic components for solid oxide fuel cells

For the determination of trace impurities in ceramic components of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), some mass spectrometric methods have been applied such as spark source mass spectrometry (SSMS), laser ionization mass spectrometry (LIMS), laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Due to a lack of suitable standard reference materials for quantifying of analytical results on La _x Sr _y MnO₃ cathode material a matrix-matched synthetic standard-high purity initial compounds doped with trace elements-was prepared in order to determine the relative sensitivity coefficients in SSMS and LA-ICP-MS. Radiofrequency glow discharge mass spectrometry (rf-GDMS) was developed for trace analysis and depth profiling of thick non-conducting layers. Surface analytical techniques, such as secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and sputtered neutral mass spectrometry (SNMS), were used to determine the element distribution on surfaces (homogeneity) and the surface contaminants of SOFC ceramic layers.Dedicated to Professor Dr. rer. nat. Hubertus Nickel on the occasion of his 65th birthday     

Single-wall carbon nanotube-based proton exchange membrane assembly for hydrogen fuel cells

A membrane electrode assembly (MEA) for hydrogen fuel cells has been fabricated using single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) support and platinum catalyst. Films of SWCNTs and commercial platinum (Pt) black were sequentially cast on a carbon fiber electrode (CFE) using a simple electrophoretic deposition procedure. Scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy showed that the nanotubes and the platinum retained their nanostructure morphology on the carbon fiber surface. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) revealed that the carbon nanotube-based electrodes exhibited an order of magnitude lower charge-transfer reaction resistance (R(ct)) for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) than did the commercial carbon black (CB)-based electrodes. The proton exchange membrane (PEM) assembly fabricated using the CFE/SWCNT/Pt electrodes was evaluated using a fuel cell testing unit operating with H(2) and O(2) as input fuels at 25 and 60 degrees C. The maximum power density obtained using CFE/SWCNT/Pt electrodes as both the anode and the cathode was approximately 20% better than that using the CFE/CB/Pt electrodes.     

Alcohol and proton transport in perfluorinated ionomer membranes for fuel cells

To clarify the transport mechanisms of alcohols and proton in perfluorosulfonated ionomer (PFSI) membranes for fuel cells, four membranes having different equivalent weight (EW) values were examined. Membranes were immersed in methanol, ethanol, and 2-propanol to prepare a total of 12 samples, and membrane swelling, mass (alcohol and proton) transports, and interactions between alcohols and proton were investigated systematically in the fully penetrated state. The membrane expansion fraction theta and alcohol content lambda increased with decreasing the EW value for all the samples. The self-diffusion coefficients (D's) of the alkyl group and of OH (including protons) were measured separately by the pulsed-gradient spin-echo (PGSE)-NMR method and the D's also increased with decreasing the EW value. These results implied that the alcohols penetrate into the hydrophilic regions of the PFSI membranes and diffuse through the space expanded by the alcohols. The ionic cluster regions formed by the alcohols resemble those induced by water in the water swollen membrane, where protons dissociated from sulfonic acid groups transport through the regions together with water molecules. The D values decreased with increasing the molecular weight of alcohols. This trend was supported by activation energies Ea estimated from the Arrhenius plots of D in the temperature range from 30 to -40 degrees C. The PGSE-NMR measurements also revealed that protons move faster than the alkyl groups in the membranes. The proton transport by the Grotthuss (hopping) mechanism was facilitated by the increase of the alcohol content and the decrease of the molecular weight. This result was also supported by the experimental results of proton conductivity kappa and mobility u(H(+)). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations of the interaction energy DeltaE(int) between proton and alcohol (including OH) showed that the /DeltaE(int)/ increases with increasing the molecular weight of alcohols, which is in a inverse relationship with the kappa and u(H(+)) values. The proton transport depends strongly on the DeltaE(int) in the membranes.     

Effect of the cathode structure on the electrochemical performance of anode-supported solid oxide fuel cells

The study elementarily investigated the effect of the cathode structure on the electrochemical performance of anode-supported solid oxide fuel cells. Four single cells were fabricated with different cathode structures, and the total cathode thickness was 15, 55, 85, and 85 μm for cell-A, cell-B, cell-C, and cell-D, respectively. The cell-A, cell-B, and cell-D included only one cathode layer, which was fabricated by ( \textLa_0.74 \textBi_0.10 \textSr_0.16 )\textMnO_{3 - d} \left( {{\text{La}}_{0.74} {\text{Bi}}_{0.10} {\text{Sr}}_{0.16} } \right){\text{MnO}}_{{3 - \delta }} (LBSM) electrode material. The cathode of the cell-C was composed of a ( \textLa_0.74 \textBi_0.10 \textSr_0.16 )\textMnO_{3 - d} - ( \textBi_0.7 \textEr_0.3 \textO_1.5 ) \left( {{\text{La}}_{0.74} {\text{Bi}}_{0.10} {\text{Sr}}_{0.16} } \right){\text{MnO}}_{{3 - \delta }} - \left( {{\text{Bi}}_{0.7} {\text{Er}}_{0.3} {\text{O}}_{1.5} } \right) (LBSM–ESB) cathode functional layer and a LBSM cathode layer. Different cathode structures leaded to dissimilar polarization character for the four cells. At 750°C, the total polarization resistance (R _p) of the cell-A was 1.11, 0.41 and 0.53 Ω cm² at the current of 0, 400, and 800 mA, respectively, and that of the cell-B was 1.10, 0.39, and 0.23 Ω cm² at the current of 0, 400, and 800 mA, respectively. For cell-C and cell-D, their polarization character was similar to that of the cell-B and R _p also decreased with the increase of the current. The maximum power density was 0.81, 1.01, 0.79, and 0.43 W cm⁻² at 750°C for cell-D, cell-C, cell-B, and cell-A, respectively. The results demonstrated that cathode structures evidently influenced the electrochemical performance of anode-supported solid oxide fuel cells.     

Performance and instabilities of proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Performance of proton exchange fuel cells with different membrane and electrode assembly (MEA) is studied. It is shown that MEA fabricated with catalyst plasma pulverization technology has the maximum performance. Some instabilities in the cell performance, observed with time, are probably due to periodic cathode flooding. Published in Russian in Elektrokhimiya, 2006, Vol. 42, No. 5, pp. 525–534. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Nanoscale building blocks for the development of novel proton exchange membrane fuel cells

We propose a new type of sulfonated aromatic polyarylenes as candidate building blocks for proton exchange membranes. Density functional theory calculations and ab initio molecular dynamics simulations suggest that desulfonation is limited at high temperatures, owing to the strong aryl-SO3H bond induced by the electron-deficient aromatic ring, and that the proposed polymers exhibit good thermomechanical stability due to the robust aromatic main-chain repeating unit. Simulations also emphasize the importance of the Grotthuss-type mechanism, with interconversion between Eigen (H9O4+) and Zundel cations (H5O2+) as limiting structures, for the hydrated proton transport in the vicinity of the sulfonic acid groups.     

Machine learning as an online diagnostic tool for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells are considered a promising power supply system with high efficiency and zero emissions. They typically work within a relatively narrow range of temperature and humidity to achieve optimal performance; however, this makes the system difficult to control, leading to faults and accelerated degradation. Two main approaches can be used for diagnosis, limited data input which provides an unintrusive, rapid but limited analysis, or advanced characterisation that provides a more accurate diagnosis but often requires invasive or slow measurements. To provide an accurate diagnosis with rapid data acquisition, machine learning methods have shown great potential. However, there is a broad approach to the diagnostic algorithms and signals used in the field. This article provides a critical view of the current approaches and suggests recommendations for future methodologies of machine learning in fuel cell diagnostic applications.     

质子交换膜燃料电池非贵金属型Fe-N-C催化剂的研究进展

质子交换膜燃料电池具有绿色、可持续、效率高等优点,被认为是解决环境与能源问题最有前途的替代方案。燃料电池核心是催化剂,目前应用最成熟的是铂族贵金属,但其高昂的成本制约着燃料电池的快速推广,另外铂族金属对CO、NH₃等气体较为敏感,使得燃料纯度要求苛刻,因此开发高性能低成本的催化剂替代贵金属是推动燃料电池商业化的重要途径。本文总结了近年来燃料电池近年来Fe-N-C催化剂的研究成果,并对Cu、Co等金属掺杂影响进行了系统综述。文中从制备方法、载体、氮源、金属掺杂等对Fe-N-C催化剂氧还原活性及耐久性的影响进行了详细的对比分析,对催化剂的失活机理进行了一定的探讨。最后,本文展望了Fe-N-C催化剂未来的发展方向,提出催化剂活性、耐久性同步提升以及优化燃料电池催化剂层的方案。     

Pd-Co-Mo electrocatalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction in proton exchange membrane fuel cells

The catalytic activity of carbon supported Pd-Co-Mo for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in a single cell proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) has been investigated at 60 degrees C and compared with data from commercial Pt catalyst and our previously reported Pd-Co-Au and Pd-Ti catalysts. The Pd-Co-Mo catalyst with a Pd:Co:Mo atomic ratio of 70:20:10 exhibits slightly higher catalytic activity like the Pd-Co-Au catalyst than the commercial Pt catalyst, but with excellent chemical stability unlike the Pd-Co-Au catalyst. The Pd-Co-Mo catalyst also exhibits better tolerance to methanol poisoning than Pt. Investigation of the catalytic activity of the Pd-Co-Mo system with varying composition and heat treatment temperature reveals that a Pd:Co:Mo atomic ratio of 70:20:10 with a heat treatment temperature of 500 degrees C exhibits the highest catalytic activity. Although the degree of alloying increases with increasing temperature from 500 to 900 degrees C as indicated by the X-ray diffraction data, the catalytic activity decreases due to an increase in particle size and a decrease in surface area.     

Chemically stable anode-supported solid oxide fuel cells based on Y-doped barium zirconate thin films having improved performance

Anode-supported solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) based on thin BaZr_0.8Y_0.2O_3 ? δ (BZY) electrolyte films were fabricated by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) on sintered NiO–BZY composite anodes. After in situ reduction of NiO to Ni, the anode substrates became porous, while retaining good adhesion with the electrolyte. A slurry-coated composite cathode made of La_0.6Sr_0.4Co_0.2Fe_0.8O_3 ? δ (LSCF) and BaCe_0.9Yb_0.1O_3 ? δ (BCYb), specifically developed for proton conducting electrolytes, was used to assemble fuel cell prototypes. Depositing by PLD 100 nm thick LSCF porous films onto the BZY thin films was essential to improve the cathode/electrolyte adhesion. A power density output of 110 mW/cm² at 600 °C, the largest reported value for an anode-supported fuel cell based on BZY at this temperature, was achieved. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements were used to investigate the different contributions to the total polarization losses.     

Novel fluoropolymer anion exchange membranes for alkaline direct methanol fuel cells

A series of novel fluoropolymer anion exchange membranes based on the copolymer of vinylbenzyl chloride, butyl methacrylate, and hexafluorobutyl methacrylate has been prepared. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and elemental analysis techniques are used to study the chemical structure and chemical composition of the membranes. The water uptake, ion-exchange capacity (IEC), conductivity, methanol permeability, and chemical stability of the membranes are also determined. The membranes exhibit high anionic conductivity in deionized water at 65 °C ranging from 3.86×10(-2) S cm(-1) to 4.36×10(-2) S cm(-1). The methanol permeability coefficients of the membranes are in the range of 4.21-5.80×10(-8) cm(2) s(-1) at 65 °C. The novel membranes also show good chemical and thermal stability. An open-circuit voltage of 0.7 V and a maximum power density of 53.2 mW cm(-2) of alkaline direct methanol fuel cell (ADMFC) with the membrane C, 1 M methanol, 1 M NaOH, and humidified oxygen are achieved at 65 °C. Therefore, these membranes have great potential for applications in fuel cell systems.     

On the development of proton conducting polymer membranes for hydrogen and methanol fuel cells

The transport properties and the swelling behaviour of NAFION and different sulfonated polyetherketones are explained in terms of distinct differences on the microstructures and in the pK_a of the acidic functional groups. The less pronounced hydrophobic/hydrophilic separation of sulfonated polyetherketones compared to NAFION corresponds to narrower, less connected hydrophilic channels and to larger separations between less acidic sulfonic acid functional groups. At high water contents, this is shown to significantly reduce electroosmotic drag and water permeation whilst maintaining high proton conductivity. Blending of sulfonated polyetherketones with other polyaryls even further reduces the solvent permeation (a factor of 20 compared to NAFION), increases the membrane flexibility in the dry state and leads to an improved swelling behaviour. Therefore, polymers based on sulfonated polyetherketones are not only interesting low-cost alternative membrane material for hydrogen fuel cell applications, they may also help to reduce the problems associated with high water drag and high methanol cross-over in direct liquid methanol fuel cells (DMFC). The relatively high conductivities observed for oligomers containing imidazole as functional groups may be exploited in fully polymeric proton conducting systems with no volatile proton solvent operating at temperatures significantly beyond 100°C, where methanol vapour may be used as a fuel in DMFCs.