Overcoming the Dilemma between Low Electrical Resistance and High Corrosion Resistance Using a Ta/(Ta,Ti)N/TiN/Ti Multilayer for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Coatings

卷:12

Baifeng Ji¹  Meijun Yang²  Qizhong Li²  Rui Min²  Mai Yang²  Rong Tu²  Yang Yuan²  Song Zhang²  Ji Shi³  Long Zheng⁴ 

[1] Hubei Key Laboratory of Roadway Bridge and Structure Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, China;

[2] State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, China;

[3] Tokyo Institute of Technology, School of Materials and Chemical Technology, Tokyo 152-8552, Japan;

[4] Zhongshan Vapor Technology Co., Ltd., Zhongshan 528400, China;

关键词: bipolar plate;    PEMFC;    multilayer coating;    interfacial contact resistance;    corrosion;    magnetron sputtering;   

DOI  :  10.3390/coatings12050689

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Bipolar plates in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are confronted by the dilemma of low contact resistance and high corrosion resistance; this study aimed to simultaneously satisfy these dimensions in a harsh environment. Using thick multilayer coatings can improve the corrosion resistance, but the contact resistance would be largely compromised. To address this challenge, we propose compatible tantalum/titanium-based coatings on 316L stainless steel (SS316L) as bipolar plates for PEMFCs. With the transition layer, the optimal TaN/(Ta,Ti)N/TiN/Ti coating exhibits an ultralow corrosion current density of 0.369 μA·cm⁻² (at +0.6 V vs. SCE) and a contact resistance of 6 mΩ cm² at 138 N/cm² after 5 h of potentiostatic polarization, both of which meet the standard of the U.S. Department of Energy. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and an equivalent electrical circuit model further elucidated that TaN/(Ta,Ti)N/TiN/Ti coating significantly impedes the oxidation reaction and dissolution of metals and provides good protection for the SS316L.

【 授权许可】

Unknown