Membrane Electrodes For Hydrogen Fuel Cells
Membrane Electrodes For Hydrogen Fuel Cells – Fuel Cell Manufacturer – Cheersonic
The membrane electrode is the basic unit of the electrochemical reaction of the fuel cell. At present, two generations of mature processes have been developed. The first generation of the membrane electrode preparation process mainly adopts the hot pressing method, and the second generation is the catalyst direct coating technology, which improves the catalyst performance. The utilization rate improves the diffusion and movement of hydrogen ions in the catalyst layer, thereby improving the performance of the membrane electrode, which is the current mainstream application technology.
Membrane electrodes determine the upper limit of stack performance, lifetime and cost.
According to the data, the key components of membrane electrodes include “proton exchange membrane”, “catalyst” and “gas diffusion layer”, each of which restricts the popularization and development of the international market due to problems such as technology has not yet completely broken through and insufficient supply of raw materials.
Proton exchange membrane: Perfluorosulfonic acid membrane is the current mainstream, and composite membrane is the future development direction. Perfluorosulfonic acid membrane: the most commonly used commercial proton exchange membrane. Perfluorosulfonic acid type membrane is the main membrane material used in fuel cells at present. The global suppliers of perfluorosulfonic acid type membrane are concentrated in Japan and European and American countries. Among them, the most widely used Nafion series of membranes is DuPont in the United States.
Composite membrane: future technology development direction.
Catalyst: Pt/C is the current mainstream, and ultra-low platinum and no platinum are the future directions. At present, the commercial catalyst commonly used in fuel cells is Pt/C, which consists of nano-scale Pt particles (3-5 nm) and activated carbon with a large specific surface area supporting these Pt particles.
The cost of fuel cell components mainly comes from raw materials and processing costs. At the current level of technology, the cost of components dominated by processing costs (such as proton exchange membranes and gas diffusion layers) can be reduced through large-scale production, but material costs dominate It is difficult to reduce costs through mass production of catalysts. Therefore, reducing the amount of platinum used is an effective way to reduce the cost of catalysts.
At present, the main producers of fuel cell catalysts in the world are 3M and Gore in the United States, Johnson Matthery in the United Kingdom, BASF in Germany, Tanaka in Japan, and Umicore in Belgium.
Gas Diffusion Layer: Cost reduction through mass production. The gas diffusion layer is located between the smooth and catalytic layers, and its main function is to provide a transport channel for the gas participating in the reaction and the generated water, and to support the catalyst. Therefore, the performance of the base material of the diffusion layer will directly affect the cell performance of the fuel cell.
In the past few decades, MEA technology has made great breakthroughs. The amount of precious metals has dropped from 8 mg/c㎡ in the 1980s to 0.102 mg/c㎡ today. At the same time, the performance and life of MEA have been greatly improved. At present, the focus of international MEA technology research is still on performance, life and cost.
The article comes from hydrogen energy observation, the author Zhang Song hydrogen energy team
Cheersonic is the leading developer and manufacturer of ultrasonic coating systems for applying precise, thin film coatings to protect, strengthen or smooth surfaces on parts and components for the microelectronics/electronics, alternative energy, medical and industrial markets, including specialized glass applications in construction and automotive.