Ion‐Exchange Plasma Membranes for Fuel Cells on a Micrometer Scale

Abstract

Recent advances in miniaturization technology make polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells very attractive as power sources for portable devices. Ion-exchange membranes for microscale fuel cells are synthesized by plasma polymerization (using a precursor containing ion-exchange groups) and intensively characterized. Ion-exchange plasma membranes are thin, amorphous, and dense materials with no defects. Spectroscopic analyses reveal a polymer-type matrix containing a rather high concentration of ion-exchange groups. Under the best synthesis conditions, membranes show a satisfying ionic conduction level and a high compatibility with other active layers of fuel cells, making them suitable for insertion in such power-supply devices.

Cold Plasma – A Promising Tool for the Development of Electrochemical Cells

“…(6) and (8)). Until recently, the results obtained in this respect were not as good as those for conventional membranes (Roualdès et al, 2007). However, the latest reports provide much more promising results.…”

“…Such a membrane has the cation-exchange Fig. 14. Schematic representation of the synthesis procedure of proton-exchange plasma polymers (Roualdès et al, 2007).…”

“…Moreover, various plasma procedures are examined in search of these membranes with the best properties. Apart from the typical PECVD method (Ennajdaoui et al, 2010;Roualdès et al, 2007), the remote (after glow) plasma technique (Jiang et al, 2011) and the plasma deposition under high pressure conditions (Merche et al, 2010) (Siow et al, 2009). …”

Synthesis and optimization of proton exchange membranes by a pulsed plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique

“…Due to its complexity, the mechanism of the polymer formation is still under debate [29e31]. It is generally believed that the process involves the fragmentation of monomer molecules and the recombination of these fragments [7,11,15]. Specifically, the plasma discharge generates energetic particles, which collide with monomer molecules to produce the active species, such as excited molecules, free radicals and ions, due to the fragmentation of monomers.…”

“…A highly qualified PEM is required to have high chemical and thermal stability and can efficiently transfer protons but blocks fuel diffusion through the membrane, which can thus improve the performance of DAFCs, especially at high current density, and simultaneously protect the cathode from poisoning by the products of the undesired reactions of permeated fuels, thereby improving the electrochemical performance of DAFCs [3,4,6]. Up to now, great efforts, ranging from modification of Nafion (a currently commercially available perfluoro PEM) to exploitation of new fabrication techniques, have been devoted to the development of a new generation of PEMs that can meet the requirements of low cost, high chemical and thermal stability, good proton conduction and low permeability to fuel [4,7,8]. Among various approaches reported for the Nafion modification or the membrane fabrication, a technique called plasma polymerization, that utilizes a plasma discharge to initiate the polymerization of organic molecules for the fabrication of PEMs, has in particular attracted significant attention [9,10].…”