Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and Passivation
Corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of stainless steel bipolar plate remains a big challenge while it has been regarded as the most promising candidate for proton exchange membrane fuel cell. The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of pickling and passivation by sulfuric acid...
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MDPI AG
2021-07-01
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Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2032-6653/12/3/101 |
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author | Yu Leng Daijun Yang Pingwen Ming Bing Li Cunman Zhang |
author_facet | Yu Leng Daijun Yang Pingwen Ming Bing Li Cunman Zhang |
author_sort | Yu Leng |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of stainless steel bipolar plate remains a big challenge while it has been regarded as the most promising candidate for proton exchange membrane fuel cell. The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of pickling and passivation by sulfuric acid and a mixture of nitric and fluoric acids, respectively, on corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of stainless steel 316L (SS316L) bipolar plate. First, pickling of the specimens of SS316L is performed in a 15 wt.% H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>. Afterwards, the specimens are passivated in a mixture of 12 wt.% HF and 4 wt.% HNO<sub>3</sub>. Electrochemical and interfacial conductivity tests are conducted to examine the change in corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of SS316L. Finally, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) reveal the evolution of surface morphology, chemical composition and surface conductivity. The results show that the corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of SS316L could be improved significantly by pickling and passivation. The increase in Cr:Fe ratio as well as a more uniform surface with higher conductivity is the main reason for the improvement of corrosion resistance and interfacial conductivity of SS316L. |
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language | English |
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spelling | doaj.art-71f83bbf5c0f438699dda0a0ed89e3892023-11-22T15:42:01ZengMDPI AGWorld Electric Vehicle Journal2032-66532021-07-0112310110.3390/wevj12030101Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and PassivationYu Leng0Daijun Yang1Pingwen Ming2Bing Li3Cunman Zhang4New Energy Automotive Engineering Centre, Tongji University, 4800 Caoangong Road, Shanghai 200029, ChinaNew Energy Automotive Engineering Centre, Tongji University, 4800 Caoangong Road, Shanghai 200029, ChinaNew Energy Automotive Engineering Centre, Tongji University, 4800 Caoangong Road, Shanghai 200029, ChinaNew Energy Automotive Engineering Centre, Tongji University, 4800 Caoangong Road, Shanghai 200029, ChinaNew Energy Automotive Engineering Centre, Tongji University, 4800 Caoangong Road, Shanghai 200029, ChinaCorrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of stainless steel bipolar plate remains a big challenge while it has been regarded as the most promising candidate for proton exchange membrane fuel cell. The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of pickling and passivation by sulfuric acid and a mixture of nitric and fluoric acids, respectively, on corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of stainless steel 316L (SS316L) bipolar plate. First, pickling of the specimens of SS316L is performed in a 15 wt.% H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>. Afterwards, the specimens are passivated in a mixture of 12 wt.% HF and 4 wt.% HNO<sub>3</sub>. Electrochemical and interfacial conductivity tests are conducted to examine the change in corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of SS316L. Finally, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) reveal the evolution of surface morphology, chemical composition and surface conductivity. The results show that the corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of SS316L could be improved significantly by pickling and passivation. The increase in Cr:Fe ratio as well as a more uniform surface with higher conductivity is the main reason for the improvement of corrosion resistance and interfacial conductivity of SS316L.https://www.mdpi.com/2032-6653/12/3/101proton exchange membrane fuel cellstainless steel bipolar platepickling and passivationcorrosion resistanceelectrical conductivity |
spellingShingle | Yu Leng Daijun Yang Pingwen Ming Bing Li Cunman Zhang Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and Passivation World Electric Vehicle Journal proton exchange membrane fuel cell stainless steel bipolar plate pickling and passivation corrosion resistance electrical conductivity |
title | Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and Passivation |
title_full | Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and Passivation |
title_fullStr | Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and Passivation |
title_full_unstemmed | Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and Passivation |
title_short | Improvement of Corrosion Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of Stainless Steel 316L Bipolar Plate by Pickling and Passivation |
title_sort | improvement of corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity of stainless steel 316l bipolar plate by pickling and passivation |
topic | proton exchange membrane fuel cell stainless steel bipolar plate pickling and passivation corrosion resistance electrical conductivity |
url | https://www.mdpi.com/2032-6653/12/3/101 |
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