How does a small structural change of anode ionomer make a big difference in alkaline membrane fuel cell performance?

Park, Eun Joo; Lee, Albert Sung Soo; Leonard, Daniel Philip; Li, Dongguo; Jeon, Jong Yeob; Bae, Chul Sung; Kim, Yu Seung

doi:10.1039/c9ta10157h

How does a small structural change of anode ionomer make a big difference in alkaline membrane fuel cell performance?

Journal Article · Mon Oct 14 00:00:00 EDT 2019 · Journal of Materials Chemistry. A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1039/c9ta10157h· OSTI ID:1764206

^[1]; ^[1]; Leonard, Daniel Philip ^[1]; ^[1]; Jeon, Jong Yeob ^[2]; Bae, Chul Sung ^[2]; ^[1]

Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst., Troy, NY (United States)

Anode ionomers of alkaline membrane fuel cells (AMFCs) play a critical role in hydrogen and water transport thus affecting cell performance and durability. Here, we modified a quaternized poly(biphenyl alkylene) ionomer with two chemical structural variations to increase hydrogen access to the AMFC anode: first, we introduced the symmetric dimethyl groups in the polymer backbone to increase polymer fractional free volume. Second, we replaced hydroxide-conducting alkyl trimethylammonium with alkyl triethylammonium to reduce cation–hydroxide–water co-adsorption on the hydrogen oxidation catalyst to increase hydrogen access to the co-adsorbed layer. Furthermore, we compared the performance benefits of the two structural variations through operating AMFCs under H₂/O₂ conditions. The membrane electrode assembly employing the modified poly(biphenyl alkylene) ionomer at the anode exhibited >1500 mW cm^-2 peak power density at 80 °C with stable short-term durability (>100 h) under a constant current density of 0.6 A cm^-2. This study provides an essential insight into designing anode ionomer of highly performing AMFCs.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE; USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). Fuel Cell Technologies Program

Grant/Contract Number:: 89233218CNA000001

OSTI ID:: 1764206

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1571303

Report Number(s):: LA-UR--20-21325

Journal Information:: Journal of Materials Chemistry. A, Journal Name: Journal of Materials Chemistry. A Journal Issue: 43 Vol. 7; ISSN 2050-7488

Publisher:: Royal Society of ChemistryCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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