Electrodeposition of graphene nano-thick coating for highly enhanced performance of titanium bipolar plates in fuel cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (31) ◽  
pp. 16909-16917 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianyu Wang ◽  
Luofu Min ◽  
Feifei Fang ◽  
Wen Zhang ◽  
Yuxin Wang
Coatings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 437
Author(s):  
Yi Liu ◽  
Luofu Min ◽  
Wen Zhang ◽  
Yuxin Wang

In this article, we proposed a facile method to electrophoretically deposit a highly conductive and corrosion-resistant graphene layer on metal bipolar plates (BPs) while avoiding the oxidation of the metal substrate during the electrophoretic deposition (EPD). p-Phenylenediamine (PPD) was first grafted onto negatively charged graphene oxide (GO) to obtain modified graphene oxide (MGO) while bearing positive charges. Then, MGO dispersed in ethanol was coated on titanium plates via cathodic EPD under a constant voltage, followed by reducing the deposited MGO with H2 at 400 °C, gaining a titanium plate coated with reduced MGO (RMGO@Ti). Under the simulated environment of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), RMGO@Ti presents a corrosion current of < 10−6 A·cm−2, approximately two orders of magnitude lower than that of bare titanium. Furthermore, the interfacial contact resistance (ICR) of RMGO@Ti is as low as 4 mΩ·cm2, which is about one-thirtieth that of bare titanium. Therefore, RMGO@Ti appears very promising for use as BP in PEMFCs.


2005 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 290-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuo-Jen Lee ◽  
Ching-Han Huang ◽  
Yu-Pang Chen ◽  
Chen-Te Hsu

Aluminum was considered a good candidate material for bipolar plates of the polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells due to its low cost, light weight, high strength and good manufacturability. But there were problems of both chemical and electrochemical corrosions in the PEM fuel cell operating environment. The major goals of this research are to find proper physical vapor deposition (PVD) coating materials which would enhance surface properties by making significant improvements on corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity at a reasonable cost. Several coating materials had been studied to analyze their corrosion resistance improvement. The corrosion rates of all materials were tested in a simulated fuel cell environment. The linear polarization curve of electrochemical method measured by potentiostat instrument was employed to determine the corrosion current. Results of the corrosion tests indicated that all of the coating materials had good corrosion resistance and were stable in the simulated fuel cell environment. The conductivities of the coated layers were better and the resistances changed very little after the corrosion test. At last, single fuel cells were made by each PVD coating material. Fuel cell tests were conducted to determine their performance w.r.t. that was made of graphite. The results of fuel cell tests indicated that metallic bipolar plates with PVD coating could be used in PEM fuel cells.


2013 ◽  
Vol 231 ◽  
pp. 106-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer R. Mawdsley ◽  
J. David Carter ◽  
Xiaoping Wang ◽  
Suhas Niyogi ◽  
Chinbay Q. Fan ◽  
...  

2010 ◽  
Vol 205 (7) ◽  
pp. 2251-2255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeng-Yu Lin ◽  
Che-Yu Lin ◽  
Shih-Kang Liu ◽  
Chi-Chao Wan ◽  
Yung-Yun Wang

Author(s):  
Shuo-Jen Lee ◽  
Kung-Ting Yang ◽  
Yu-Ming Lee ◽  
Chi-Yuan Lee

In this research, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is employed to monitor the resistance of a fuel cell during operation with different operating conditions and different materials for the bipolar plates. The operating condition variables are cell humidity, pure oxygen or air as oxidizer, and current density. Three groups of single cells were tested: a graphite cell, a stainless steel cell (treated and original), and a thin, small, treated stainless steel cell. A treated cell here means using an electrochemical treatment to improve bipolar plate anticorrosion capability. From the results, the ohmic resistance of a fully humidified treated stainless steel fuel cell is 0.28 Ω cm2. Under the same operating conditions, the ohmic resistance of the graphite and the original fuel cell are each 0.1 Ω cm2 and that of the small treated cell is 0.3 Ω cm2. Cell humidity has a greater influence on resistance than does the choice of oxidizer; furthermore, resistance variation due to humidity effects is more serious with air support. From the above results, fuel cells fundamental phenomenon such as ohmic resistance, charge transfer resistance, and mass transport resistance under different operating conditions could be evaluated.


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