Ionomer Films Impact on The Structure, Flow Regime, and The Wettability of The Catalyst Layer of PEMFC

Percolation testing and contact angle measurements have been used to investigate the role of relative humidity on structure, mass transport, and wettability of a PEM fuel cell catalyst layer and membrane. Four samples were tested, two catalyst layers and two membranes. Structure and mass transport c...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Alofari Karrar, Me´dici Ezequiel, Tajiri Kazuya, Allen Jeffrey
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: EDP Sciences 2022-01-01
Series:E3S Web of Conferences
Online Access:https://www.e3s-conferences.org/articles/e3sconf/pdf/2022/01/e3sconf_efc2022_04019.pdf
Description
Summary:Percolation testing and contact angle measurements have been used to investigate the role of relative humidity on structure, mass transport, and wettability of a PEM fuel cell catalyst layer and membrane. Four samples were tested, two catalyst layers and two membranes. Structure and mass transport changes in the catalyst layers resulting from RH changes were studied in terms of percolation pressure. A clear change in the structure between low and high RH conditioning was observed. Relative humidity (RH) cycling also impacted percolation pressures with an indication of catalyst layer cracking. In addition, RH effect on wettability of both catalyst layers and membranes was studied by measuring contact angles of sessile drops.
ISSN:2267-1242