Micro-crack formation in direct methanol fuel cell electrodes

JOURNAL OF POWER SOURCES

卷:271

Article

Li, Qing¹  Spernjak, Dusan¹  Zelenay, Piotr¹  Kim, Yu Seung¹ 

[1] Los Alamos Natl Lab, Mat Phys & Applicat Div, Los Alamos, NM 87545 USA

关键词: Direct methanol fuel cell;    Performance degradation;    Micro-cracks;    X-ray tomography;    Long-term stability;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.jpowsour.2014.08.036

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

This study focuses on the micro-crack formation of Nafion (R)-based membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) after extended direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) operation. All electrodes, both with metal-black and carbon-supported catalysts, contain some micro-cracks initially; the area covered by these cracks increases both in the anode and cathode after 100-hours of DMFC test. X-ray tomography shows an increase in the crack area in both anode and cathode that correlates with methanol feed concentration and methanol crossover. The MEAs with carbon-supported catalysts and thicker membrane are more resistant to the formation of micro-cracks compared to those with metal-black catalysts and thinner membrane, respectively. The impact of the micro-crack formation on cell performance and durability is limited over the 100-hour DMFC operation, with the long-term impact remaining unknown. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

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