Physically crosslinked KOH impregnated polyvinyl alcohol based alkaline membrane for direct methanol fuel cell

Abstract

A polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) based alkaline membrane was developed in the laboratory for use in direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC). This study investigates the performance of the alkaline PVA membrane, crosslinked by a physical crosslinking method. The membrane was characterized using water uptake, KOH uptake, ion exchange capacity, and ionic conductivity methods. The anode and cathode electrocatalysts were Pt-Ru (30:15 % by wt)/carbon black (C) and Pt (40 % by wt)/high surface area carbon (C HSA ), respectively. A similar electrocatalyst loading in the order of 1 mg/cm 2 was used at the anode and cathode. The cell voltage and current density data were recorded for different concentrations of fuel (methanol) and electrolyte (KOH). The optimum conditions for the fuel cell were 2 M methanol mixed in 3 M KOH solution at a flow rate of 2 mL/min with a cathode feed of humidified oxygen at a flow rate of 100 mL/min. The DMFC was operated at 30 8C, irrespective of other operating conditions. The maximum open circuit voltage of 0.6 V, current density of 7.71 mA/cm 2 at a cell voltage of 0.23 V, and maximum power density of 1.79 mW/cm 2 were obtained at the optimum cell condition. The KOH-doped PVA solid electrolyte was successfully tested in a direct methanol fuel cell, which results in excellent power density. Single cell test results prove that the physically crosslinked KOH-doped PVA electrolyte could be used as a suitable solid electrolyte in a fuel cell.

Methane Hydrate in Confined Spaces: An Alternative Storage System

“…Because of the slow kinetics of the formation, the crystals are formed ex-situ and afterwards transferred into the DSC cell under liquid nitrogen. [127] Although the experimental setup required small quantities of sample, the temperature rate must be sufficiently slow to guarantee conditions as close to the equilibrium as possible (e. g., 0.25-1.00 K min À1 ), which leads to long measurement time. The methane hydrate heat of dissociation, DH d , can be calculated at different pressures.…”

Polyvinyl alcohol‐based membranes for filtration of aqueous solutions: A comprehensive review

“…[54] Variety of polymers have already been applied for DMFC membranes [55][56][57][58][59] among which PVA-based ones are also highly favored. [60][61][62] Increased membrane weight loss, [63] high temperature/ pressure resistance, [64,65] improved water/alcohol separation, [66,67] and most importantly, enhanced proton conductivity [68,69] are major benefits associated with PVA membranes in DMFCs.…”

Poly(vinyl alcohol)‐based membranes for fuel cell and water treatment applications: A review on recent advancements

“…Ref. : KOH‐doped‐PVA; 116 PVA/CSPVA/CS ECNCM; 117 QCS‐PVA/QLDH@SiO 2 ; 118 PVA‐ b ‐PVBTAC; 59 QPVA/GO; 114 QPVA/GO; 119 PVA/PDDA/MWCNTs; 120 PVA/PDDA/nano‐zirconia; 121 QPVA/CS/MoS 2 ; 113 QPVA/nFS; 122 ; QCS‐PVA/LDH@CNTs; 123 QPPONF/PVA; 124 QPVA/Fe 3 O 4 @GO; 114 QPVA/GO; 125 PVA‐Silica/CNC; 126 PVA/PQ‐10; 127 Py‐PVA‐Silica; 21 and QPVBC/PVA IPN 115 . Abbreviations: CNC, cellulose nanocrystals; CSPVA, crosslinked sulfonated PVA; ECNFM, electrospun composite nanofiber membrane; FS, Fumed silica; IPN, interpenetrating polymer network; MWCNT, mutiwalled CNT; FCNT, functionalized CNT; MoS 2 , Molybdenum disulfide; PDDA, poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride); PQ‐10, cationic hydroxyl ethyl cellulose (polyquaternium‐10); PVA‐ b ‐PVBTAC, poly(vinyl alcohol‐ b ‐vinyl benzene trimethyl ammonium chloride); QCS, quaternized chitosan; QLDH, quaternized layered double hydroxide; QPPONF, quaternized poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenylene oxide) nanofiber; QPVA, quaternized PVA; QPVBC, quaternized poly(vinylbenzyl chloride)…”