Effect of microporous layer composed of carbon nanotube and acetylene black on polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell performance

Lin, Sheng‐Yan; Chang, Ming‐Huei

doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2014.10.146

Cited by 46 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…[14] Lin and Chang also reported improvements in acetylene black performance through the addition of nanotubes. [15] Other studies have investigated the effects of carbon loading [16] and binder percentage [17] for further MPL improvements.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electrochemically Produced Graphene for Microporous Layers in Fuel Cells

et al. 2016

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The microporous layer (MPL) is a key cathodic component in proton exchange membrane fuel cells owing to its beneficial influence on two-phase mass transfer. However, its performance is highly dependent on material properties such as morphology, porous structure, and electrical resistance. To improve water management and performance, electrochemically exfoliated graphene (EGN) microsheets are considered as an alternative to the conventional carbon black (CB) MPLs. The EGN-based MPLs decrease the kinetic overpotential and the Ohmic potential loss, whereas the addition of CB to form a composite EGN+CB MPL improves the mass-transport limiting current density drastically. This is reflected by increases of approximately 30 and 70 % in peak power densities at 100 % relative humidity (RH) compared with those for CB- and EGN-only MPLs, respectively. The composite EGN+CB MPL also retains the superior performance at a cathode RH of 20 %, whereas the CB MPL shows significant performance loss.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electrochemically Produced Graphene for Microporous Layers in Fuel Cells

et al. 2016

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“…Tanuma et al 28,29 fabricated hydrophilic MPLs composed of vapor-grown carbon fibers and ionomer, and the authors obtained favorable performance with the application of hydrophilic MPLs in both the anode and cathode. According to the aforementioned works, [19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] the MPLs containing MWCNTs were particularly beneficial for liquid water removal. However, the underlying mechanisms for water management in these MWCNT-based MPLs have not been identified within the literature.…”

mentioning

confidence: 98%

Multiwall Carbon Nanotube-Based Microporous Layers for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells

Lee

Banerjee

George

et al. 2017

J. Electrochem. Soc.

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The presence of multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) corresponded to a dispersion of carbon black particles in the microporous layer (MPL) of the polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell. The gas diffusion layer (GDL) with a MWCNT-based MPL exhibited larger pores and a higher porosity compared to a conventional GDL, and less MPL intrusion into the GDL substrate was observed with the MWCNTs-based MPL. The GDLs were evaluated in operando in a fuel cell that was customized for concurrent liquid water visualization (synchrotron X-ray radiography) and electrochemical characterization. The MWCNT-based fuel cell exhibited higher power densities and lower mass transport resistances compared to the fuel cell with the conventional GDL; however, a higher liquid water saturation was observed for the MWCNT-based GDL. Although the liquid water saturation in the MWCNTbased GDL was higher, its higher effective porosity led to superior performance compared to the conventional fuel cell. The use of the MWCNTs-based MPL resulted in improved oxygen transport in the fuel cell, particularly at high current densities. The achievement of effective water management in the polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell remains a challenge. Excess liquid water accumulation in the gas diffusion layer (GDL) hinders the transport of oxygen in the fuel cell. Reduced oxygen diffusion in the liquid water saturated GDL leads to efficiency losses and unstable performance.1,2 However, the commonly used bi-layered GDL (containing a carbon fiber substrate and a microporous layer (MPL)) has been shown to enhance liquid water management and the overall performance of the fuel cell. [3][4][5][6][7][8] In recent years, significant effort has been devoted to developing novel carbon fiber substrates and MPLs.9-18 Thomas et al. 9 developed a novel method for preparing hydrophobic GDLs via the electrochemical reduction of diazonium salts. GDLs were prepared with homogenous hydrophobicity distributions in the absence of pore structure modifications. Nguyen et al. 10 introduced the direct fluorination of the GDL for providing homogenous hydrophobicity. Less liquid water content was observed in these novel GDLs compared to the conventional GDL (SGL 24 BC) when visualized with soft X-rays. In the works of Forner-Cuenca et al.,11,12 a patterning of wettability was applied to a Toray GDL through radiation grafting. Hydrophilic regions facilitated preferential pathways for liquid water transport, while hydrophobic regions facilitated gas transport. Chevalier et al.13 created a novel GDL via electrospinning and radiation grafting. Ko et al.14 proposed a novel GDL through the dry deposition of hydrophobic silicone nanolayer on carbon fibers. The longterm operational stability and dynamic response of the GDL were improved.On the other hand, a number of works have focused on MPL additives for improving water management in fuel cells.19-29 While conventional MPLs consist of carbon black particles and a hydrophobic agent, such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), recent ...

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“…As already seen above, MEAs with higher porosity/permeability cathode GDLs (#3, #6) do not show any indication of flooding since the performance increases further with increasing RH even at 2 A cm −2 (Figure 3, top). A recent study of such MPLs (acetylene black/MWCNTs) has demonstrated that the performance gains are to be attributed to low water saturation in the cathode catalyst layers and that the enhanced conductivity of the MPL is of minor importance for humidified operating conditions 22.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, multilayer MPLs containing hydrophilic agents 14–17 or hydrophilised GDLs/MPLs 18 were shown to support membrane hydration under low humidity conditions. At high levels of humidity, the use of gas diffusion layers with MPLs containing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) has recently proven to be very effective 19–22. Mass transport limitations were found to be largely alleviated and there are indications that the durability is improved, simultaneously 21.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Benefits of Membrane Electrode Assemblies with Asymmetrical GDL Configurations for PEM Fuel Cells

Schweiss

2015

Fuel Cells

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Membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs), based on commercial catalyst‐coated membranes combined with various gas diffusion layers (GDLs) on anode and cathode, were studied in terms of their specific advantages for different operations regimes of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs.) It is verified that MEAs with optimized gas diffusion layer designs (backing and micro‐porous layers) on anode and cathode are able to provide improved cell performance combined with a largely reduced sensitivity towards changes in the relative humidity as compared to MEAs with symmetrical gas diffusion layer configuration.

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Effect of microporous layer composed of carbon nanotube and acetylene black on polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell performance

Cited by 46 publications

References 13 publications

Electrochemically Produced Graphene for Microporous Layers in Fuel Cells

Electrochemically Produced Graphene for Microporous Layers in Fuel Cells

Multiwall Carbon Nanotube-Based Microporous Layers for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells

Benefits of Membrane Electrode Assemblies with Asymmetrical GDL Configurations for PEM Fuel Cells

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