Influence of ionomer content on the structure and performance of PEFC membrane electrode assemblies

Jian Xie; Fan Xu; David L. Wood; Karren L. More; Thomas A. Zawodzinski; Wayne H. Smith

doi:10.1016/j.electacta.2010.06.067

Influence of ionomer content on the structure and performance of PEFC membrane electrode assemblies

Jian Xie, Fan Xu, David L. Wood, Karren L. More, Thomas A. Zawodzinski, Wayne H. Smith

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

118 Scopus citations

Abstract

Nafion^® ionomer content of the cathode catalyst-layer of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC), made by the "decal" hot pressing method, has been investigated for its effect on performance and structure of the membrane electrode assembly (MEA). Varying Nafion^® content was shown to have an effect on performance within the entire range of polarization curves (i.e. kinetic, ohmic, and mass-transport regions) as well as on the structure. AFM analysis shows the effect of Nafion on the dispersion of carbon aggregates. Further analysis using TEM demonstrates the effect of Nafion on both the dispersion of carbon aggregates and the distribution and thickness of the Nafion ionomer films surrounding the catalyst/carbon aggregates. The MEA structure change correlates well with the MEA performance on both kinetics and mass-transport region. The determining factors on the performance of MEA are the interfacial zone (between the ionomer and catalyst particle), the dispersion of catalyst/carbon aggregates and the distribution/thickness of Nafion films. An optimized Nafion^® content in the range of 27 ± 6 wt.% for the cathode was determined for an E-TEK 20% Pt₃Cr/C catalyst at a loading of 0.20 mg Pt/cm².

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	7404-7412
Number of pages	9
Journal	Electrochimica Acta
Volume	55
Issue number	24
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2010.06.067
State	Published - Oct 1 2010

Funding

This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Hydrogen, Fuel Cells & Infrastructure Technology and Office of Basic Energy Sciences−Chemical Sciences . Further acknowledgement is given to Jerzy Clistofor, Francisco Uribe, and Mahlon Wilson for helpful discussions.

Keywords

Catalyst-layer structure
Ionomer content
MEA
Membrane electrode assembly
PEFC
Polymer electrolyte fuel cell

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10.1016/j.electacta.2010.06.067

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title = "Influence of ionomer content on the structure and performance of PEFC membrane electrode assemblies",

abstract = "Nafion{\textregistered} ionomer content of the cathode catalyst-layer of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC), made by the {"}decal{"} hot pressing method, has been investigated for its effect on performance and structure of the membrane electrode assembly (MEA). Varying Nafion{\textregistered} content was shown to have an effect on performance within the entire range of polarization curves (i.e. kinetic, ohmic, and mass-transport regions) as well as on the structure. AFM analysis shows the effect of Nafion on the dispersion of carbon aggregates. Further analysis using TEM demonstrates the effect of Nafion on both the dispersion of carbon aggregates and the distribution and thickness of the Nafion ionomer films surrounding the catalyst/carbon aggregates. The MEA structure change correlates well with the MEA performance on both kinetics and mass-transport region. The determining factors on the performance of MEA are the interfacial zone (between the ionomer and catalyst particle), the dispersion of catalyst/carbon aggregates and the distribution/thickness of Nafion films. An optimized Nafion{\textregistered} content in the range of 27 ± 6 wt.% for the cathode was determined for an E-TEK 20% Pt3Cr/C catalyst at a loading of 0.20 mg Pt/cm2.",

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AU - Xu, Fan

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AU - Zawodzinski, Thomas A.

AU - Smith, Wayne H.

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Influence of ionomer content on the structure and performance of PEFC membrane electrode assemblies

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