Fabrication of gas diffusion electrode via Pt electrodeposition on cathodic oxidized carbon paper as the anode for high-temperature polymer membrane fuel cell in the presence of CO

A polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) is an electrochemical device that converts chemical energy into electrical energy and heat. The energy conversion is simple; however, the multiphysics phenomena involved in the energy conversion process must be analyzed in detail. The gas diffusion layer (GDL) provides a diffusion media for reactant gases and gives mechanical support to the fuel cell. It is a complex medium whose properties impact the fuel cell’s efficiency. Therefore, an in-depth analysis is required to improve its mechanical and physical properties. In the current study, several transport phenomena through three-dimensional digitally created GDLs have been analyzed. Once the porous microstructure is generated and the transport phenomena are mimicked, transport parameters related to the fluid flow and mass diffusion are computed. The GDLs are approximated to the carbon paper represented as a grouped package of carbon fibers. Several correlations, based on the fiber diameter, to predict their transport properties are proposed. The digitally created GDLs and the transport phenomena have been modeled using the open-source library named Open Pore Network Modeling (OpenPNM). The proposed correlations show a good fit with the obtained data with an R-square of approximately 0.98.

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Study of the synergism effect of a binary carbon system in the nanostructure of the gas diffusion electrode (GDE) of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Journal of Power Sources ◽

10.1016/j.jpowsour.2007.03.053 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 169 (2) ◽

pp. 327-333 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Mehdi Kheirmand ◽

Hussein Gharibi ◽

Rasol Abdullah Mirzaie ◽

Monireh Faraji ◽

Mohammad Zhiani

Keyword(s):

Fuel Cell ◽

Proton Exchange Membrane ◽

Gas Diffusion ◽

Gas Diffusion Electrode ◽

Proton Exchange ◽

Exchange Membrane ◽

Carbon System ◽

Synergism Effect

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Quantifying phosphoric acid in high-temperature polymer electrolyte fuel cell components by X-ray tomographic microscopy

Journal of Synchrotron Radiation ◽

10.1107/s1600577514016348 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 21 (6) ◽

pp. 1319-1326 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

S. H. Eberhardt ◽

F. Marone ◽

M. Stampanoni ◽

F. N. Büchi ◽

T. J. Schmidt

Keyword(s):

High Temperature ◽

Fuel Cell ◽

Phosphoric Acid ◽

Polymer Electrolyte ◽

Diffusion Layer ◽

Gas Diffusion Layer ◽

Gas Diffusion ◽

X Ray ◽

Wide Range ◽

Cell Components

Synchrotron-based X-ray tomographic microscopy is investigated for imaging the local distribution and concentration of phosphoric acid in high-temperature polymer electrolyte fuel cells. Phosphoric acid fills the pores of the macro- and microporous fuel cell components. Its concentration in the fuel cell varies over a wide range (40–100 wt% H3PO4). This renders the quantification and concentration determination challenging. The problem is solved by using propagation-based phase contrast imaging and a referencing method. Fuel cell components with known acid concentrations were used to correlate greyscale values and acid concentrations. Thus calibration curves were established for the gas diffusion layer, catalyst layer and membrane in a non-operating fuel cell. The non-destructive imaging methodology was verified by comparing image-based values for acid content and concentration in the gas diffusion layer with those from chemical analysis.

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