Titanium porous-transport layers for PEM water electrolysis prepared by tape casting

Lee, Jason Keonhag; Lau, Grace Y.; Sabharwal, Mayank; Weber, Adam Z.; Peng, Xiong; Tucker, Michael C.

doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2022.232606

Titanium porous-transport layers for PEM water electrolysis prepared by tape casting

Journal Article · Fri Jan 13 00:00:00 EST 2023 · Journal of Power Sources

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2022.232606· OSTI ID:2323565

^[1]; Lau, Grace Y. ^[1]; ^[1]; Weber, Adam Z. ^[1]; Peng, Xiong ^[1]; ^[1]

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

While the porous-transport layer (PTL) is a key component in PEM electrolyzers, it is one of the most underexplored due to limited available structures. In this work, we present a novel PTL design for PEM water electrolyzers enabled by a cost-effective, scalable tape-casting technique. Here, a precise control of the PTL pore structure is achieved by incorporating poreformers of various sizes, and by varying the titanium and poreformer ratio. The structures are characterized with SEM and synchrotron X-ray computed tomography imaging techniques. Comprehensive electrochemical performance analysis demonstrates that higher titanium loading provides improved contact at the catalyst-layer/PTL interface but suffers from severe mass-transport losses due to gas bubbles. We solve this mass-transport problem by mixing in large poreformer beads that produce a highly porous structure with excellent gas removal properties yet still maintaining mechanical integrity. The PTL fabricated with 60:40 Ti:PMMA ratio and 60 μm PMMA bead size outperformed the standard commercial Ti powder-based PTL by 62 mV at 4 A/cm².

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Office of Sustainable Transportation. Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technologies Office (HFTO); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Scientific User Facilities (SUF)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231

OSTI ID:: 2323565

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 2326965

Journal Information:: Journal of Power Sources, Journal Name: Journal of Power Sources Vol. 559; ISSN 0378-7753

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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