Minimizing mass-transport loss in proton exchange membrane fuel cell by freeze-drying of cathode catalyst layers

Talukdar, Krishan; Delgado, Sofia; Lagarteira, Tiago; Gazdzicki, Pawel; Friedrich, K. Andreas

doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2019.04.094

Cited by 54 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…On the one hand, porous materials applied in electrochemical processes are very often produced with spatial gradients in the pore size [39]. In a wide range of production methods, the structure development occurs rather randomly under uncontrolled conditions [40]. Secondly, the softer materials, such as felt or foam, are very often compressed inside the technical equipment, resulting in a gradient of pore sizes [41,42].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Computational Optimization of Porous Structures for Electrochemical Processes

et al. 2020

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Porous structures are naturally involved in electrochemical processes. The specific architectures of the available porous materials, as well as their physical properties, crucially affect their applications, e.g., their use in fuel cells, batteries, or electrolysers. A key point is the correlation of transport properties (mass, heat, and charges) in the spatially—and in certain cases also temporally—distributed pore structure. In this paper, we use mathematical modeling to investigate the impact of the pore structure on the distribution of wetting and non-wetting phases in porous transport layers used in water electrolysis. We present and discuss the potential of pore network models and an upscaling strategy for the simulation of the saturation of the pore space with liquid and gas, as well as the computation of the relative permeabilities and oxygen dissolution and diffusion. It is studied how a change of structure, i.e., the spatial grading of the pore size distribution and porosity, change the transport properties. Several situations are investigated, including a vertical gradient ranging from small to large pore sizes and vice versa, as well as a dual-porosity network. The simulation results indicate that the specific porous structure has a significant impact on the spatial distribution of species and their respective relative permeabilities. In more detail, it is found that the continuous increase of pore sizes from the catalyst layer side towards the water inlet interface yields the best transport properties among the investigated pore networks. This outcome could be useful for the development of grading strategies, specifically for material optimization for improved transport kinetics in water electrolyser applications and for electrochemical processes in general.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Computational Optimization of Porous Structures for Electrochemical Processes

et al. 2020

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“…The increase in thickness results in a corresponding decrease in the mass transport through the catalyst layer, with some of the electrode signal lagging behind the voltage peak. [35] Some recent work has shown that this picture is complicated by different operating conditions (humidity, gas flow rates, current density, etc.) as well as the details of the catalyst layer design.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A novel fuel cell design for operando energy-dispersive x-ray absorption measurements

Leach

Hack

Amboage

et al. 2021

J. Phys.: Condens. Matter

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A polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) has been designed to allow operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) measurements of catalysts. The cell has been developed to operate under standard fuel cell conditions, with elevated temperatures and humidification of the gas-phase reactants, both of which greatly impact the catalyst utilisation. X-ray windows in the endplates of the cell facilitate collection of XAS spectra during fuel cell operation while maintaining good compression in the area of measurement. Results of polarisation curves and cyclic voltammograms (CVs) showed that the operando cell performs well as a fuel cell, while also providing XAS data of suitable quality for robust XANES analysis. The cell has produced comparable XAS results when performing a cyclic voltammogram to an established in situ cell when measuring the Pt LIII edge. Similar trends of Pt oxidation, and reduction of the formed Pt oxide, have been presented with a time resolution of 5 seconds for each spectrum, paving the way for time-resolved spectral measurements of fuel cell catalysts in a fully-operating fuel cell.

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“…K. A. Friedrich et al. [ 306 ] demonstrated the correlation between Pt utilization and performance of PEMFC, depending on the drying method during the manufacturing of electrodes ( Figure A‐1). The porosity of electrode prepared by freeze‐drying method was about 3.7 times higher than that of oven‐dried electrode (Figure 10A‐2).…”

Section: Electrochemical Energy Storage and Conversion Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Reproduced with permission. [ 306 ] Copyright 2019, Elsevier. 4) schematic illustration the fabrication of Pt/GR‐CNTs, 5) SEM image of GR‐CNTs, 6) CV profiles of each of catalysts in 0.5 m H 2 SO 4 at 50 mV s −1 .…”

Section: Electrochemical Energy Storage and Conversion Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A New Era of Integrative Ice Frozen Assembly into Multiscale Architecturing of Energy Materials

Yeon

Gupta

Bhattacharya

et al. 2022

Adv Funct Materials

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The ice templating assembly has been investigated to construct macroporous channels of functional nanomaterials with well‐defined homogeneous morphology. Recently, this templating method has been revisited integrating with other materials’ synthesis and processing methodologies (such as, spinning, spraying, filtration, hydrothermal, oxygenation, gelation, and 3D printing) for electrochemical energy conversion and storage applications. Herein, the recent progress on “integrative ice frozen assembly” focusing on the hierarchical structures and chemistries of functional nanomaterials such as, organic, inorganic, carbon, and composite materials for a rational design of energy application‐oriented materials is comprehensively reviewed. This integrative process allows functional nanomaterials to be assembled into various dimensions, such as, 0D, 1D, 2D, and 3D macrostructures, as well as, into larger bulk objects such as, fibers, films, monoliths, and powders. The fundamental understanding of the integrative ice frozen assembly is thermodynamically and kinetically discussed with the help of primitive freeze casting domain knowledge and the energy conversion and storage performances of the as‐designed electrodes with their hierarchical structures and chemistries are further correlated. The applications of the as‐assembled electrodes into batteries, supercapacitors, fuel cells, and electrocatalysis are also addressed. Finally, the perspective on the current impediments and future directions in this field is discussed.

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Minimizing mass-transport loss in proton exchange membrane fuel cell by freeze-drying of cathode catalyst layers

Cited by 54 publications

References 43 publications

Computational Optimization of Porous Structures for Electrochemical Processes

Computational Optimization of Porous Structures for Electrochemical Processes

A novel fuel cell design for operando energy-dispersive x-ray absorption measurements

A New Era of Integrative Ice Frozen Assembly into Multiscale Architecturing of Energy Materials

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