• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.283-292
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• 2023

Currently, spray coating has attracted interest in the mass production of anode catalyst layers for proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE). The solvent in the spray ink is a critical factor for the catalyst dispersion in ink, the microstructure of the catalyst layer, and the PEMWE performance. Herein, various pure organic solvents were examined as a substitute for conventional isopropanol-deionized water (IPA-DIW) mixture for ink solvent. Among the polar solvents that exhibited better IrO₂ dispersion over nonpolar solvents, 2-butanol (2-BuOH) was selected as a suitable candidate. The PEMWE single cells were fabricated using 2-BuOH at various ionomer contents, spray nozzle types, and drying temperatures, and their performance was compared to the cells fabricated using a conventional IPA-DIW mixture. The PEMWE single cells with 2-BuOH solvent showed good performances comparable to the conventional IPA-DIW mixture case and highly durable performances under accelerated degradation tests.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.35-41
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• 2013

Properties of $NaBH_4$ hydrolysis reaction using Co-P-B/FeCrAlloy catalyst and the catalyst durability were studied. Co-P-B/FeCrAlloy catalyst showed low activation energy such as 25.2 kJ/mol in 5 wt% $NaBH_4$ solution, which was similar that of noble metal catalyst. The activation energy increased as the $NaBH_4$ concentration increased. Formation of gel at high concentration of $NaBH_4$ seriously affected hydrogen evolution rate and the catalyst durability. The catalyst loss decreased as reaction temperature increased due to lower gel formation when the concentration of $NaBH_4$ was over 20 wt%. Considering hydrogen generation rate and durability of catalyst, the catalyst supported with FeCrAlloy heat-treated at $1,000^{\circ}C$ without ultra vibration during dipping and calcination after catalyst dipping was best catalyst. To use catalyst more than three times in 25 wt% $NaBH_4$ solution, it should be reacted at higher temperature than $60^{\circ}C$.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.148-154
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• 2009

With respect to the durability of large scale ($150cm^2$) membrane electrode assembly (MEA) of direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), degradation phenomena at cathode is monitored and analyzed according to the position on the cathode surface. After constant current mode operation of large scale MEA for 500 hr, the MEA is divided into three parts along the cathode channel; (close to) inlet, middle, and (close to) outlet. The performance of each MEA is tested and it is revealed that the MEA from the cathode outlet of large MEA shows the worst performance. This is due to the catalyst degradation and GDL delamination caused by flooding at cathode outlet of large MEA during the 500 hr operation. Particularly on the catalyst degradation, the loss of electrochemically active surface area (ECSA) of catalyst gets worse along the cathode channel from inlet to outlet, of which the reason is believed to be loss of catalysts by dissolution and migration rather than their agglomeration. The extent of loss in the performance and catalyst degradation has strong relation to the cathode flooding and it is required to develop proper water management techniques and separator channel design to control the flooding.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2010.06a
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• pp.135.2-135.2
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• 2010

Carbon nanotube(CNT) has been spotlighted as a promising candidate for catalyst support material for PEMFC (proton exchange membrane fuel cell). The considerable properties of CNT include high surface area, outstanding thermal, electrical conductivity and mechanical stability. In this study, to fully utilize the properties of CNTs, we prepared directly oriented CNT on carbon paper as a catalyst support in the cathode electrode. The CNT layer was prepared by a chemical vapor deposition(CVD) process. And the Pt particles were deposited on the CNT oriented carbon paper by impregnation and eletro-deposition method. The potential advantages of directly oriented CNT on carbon paper can include improved thermal and charge transfer through direct contact between the electrolyte and the electrode and enhanced exposure of Pt catalyst sites during the reaction.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.65-67
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• 2003

The present paper highlights on the need to understand the correlation of the characteristics of the catalyst layer with the performance of the polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). This paper deals with the correlation of the platinum loading in the catalyst layer and the performance of the polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell and also the correlation of the required hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity in the catalyst layer to get the optimum performance under given operating conditions.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.754-760
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• 1999

The properties of the catalyst for a direct internal reforming type molten carbonate fuel cell were examined by ICP, BET, CHN, EDS, and $H_2$ chemisorption. Potassium and lithium, the components of carbonate electrolyte, were transported to the catalyst during the operation of fuel cell, and the amounts of the deposited alkali elements were reduced in the order of inlet, outlet, and the middle. From the direct correlation between the amount of alkali and the physical properties such as BET surface area and Ni dispersion, and from the observation of the lump of the alkali species on the poisoned catalyst, it was confirmed that the physical blocking of the catalyst by alkali deposition was the main reason for the deactivation. Although the amount of alkali species was greater at the inlet than at the oulet, the catalyst sampled from the outlet had lower activity. This was caused by the chemical interaction between the alkali species and the catalyst at the outlet where temperature was highest in the cell body, which was detected by FT-IR analyses.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.30-38
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• 2013

In this study, a catalyst slurry was prepared with a Pt/C catalyst, Nafion ionomer solution as a binder, an ionic liquid (IL) (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate), deionized water and ethanol as a solvent for the application to polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) at high-temperatures. The effect of the IL in the electrode of each design was investigated by performing a cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurement. Electrodes with different IL distributions inside and on the surface of the catalyst electrode were examined. During the CV test, the electrochemical surface area (ESA) obtained for the Pt/C electrode without ILs gradually decreased owing to three mechanisms: Pt dissolution/redeposition, carbon corrosion, and place exchange. As the IL content increased in the electrode, an ESA decrement was observed because ILs leaked from the Nafion polymer in the electrode. In addition, the CVs under conditions simulating leakage of ILs from the electrode and electrolyte were evaluated. When the ILs leaked from the electrode, minor significant changes in the CV were observed. On the other hand, when the leakage of ILs originated from the electrolyte, the CVs showed different features. It was also observed that the ESA decreased significantly. Thus, leakage of ILs from the polymer electrolyte caused a performance loss for the PEFCs by reducing the ESA. As a result, greater entrapment stability of ILs in the polymer matrix is needed to improve electrode performance.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.362-367
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• 2009

Recently, the use of formic acid as a fuel for direct liquid fuel cells has emerged as a promising alternative to methanol. In the work presented herein, we evaluated direct formic acid fuel cells(DFAFCs) with various components under operating conditions, for example, the thickness of the proton exchange membrane, concentration of formic acid, gas diffusion layer, and commercial catalyst. The thickness of the proton exchange membrane influenced performance related to the fuel cross-over. To optimize the cell performance, we investigated on the proper concentration of formic acid and catalyst for the formic acid oxidation. Consequently, membrance-electrode assembly(MEA) consisted of $Nafion^{(R)}$-115 and the Pt-Ru black as a anode catalyst showed the maximum performance. This performance was superior to the DMFCs' one.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.355-360
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• 2012

The characteristics of power generation were investigated by changing the electrical conductivity from 10 to 40mS/cm using air-cathode microbial fuel cell, which had graphite fiber fabric(GFF) anode. There were three kinds of cathode used: one was carbon cloth cathode coated with Pt, another was carbon nanotube(CNT) cathode with non-precious catalyst of Fe-Cu-Mn, and the other was carbon nanotube(CNT) cathode without any catalyst. When it was operated in batch mode, power density of 1369.5mW/$m^2$ was achieved at conductivity of 20mS/cm. Power density from MFC with CNT cathode coated with multi-catalyst of Fe-Cu-Mn was shown about 985.55mW/$m^2$, which was 75.1% compared the power density of carbon cloth coated with Pt. This meant that CNT cathode coated with multi-catalyst of Fe-Cu-Mn could be an alternative of carbon cloth cathode.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.207-219
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• 2024

Metal-N-C (MNC) catalysts have been anticipated as promising candidates for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) to achieve low-cost polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. The structure of the M-N_x moiety enabled a high catalytic activity that was not observed in previously reported transition metal nanoparticle-based catalysts. Despite progress in non-precious metal catalysts, the low density of active sites of MNCs, which resulted in lower single-cell performance than Pt/C, needs to be resolved for practical application. This review focused on the recent studies and methodologies aimed to overcome these limitations and develop an inexpensive catalyst with excellent activity and durability in an alkaline environment. It included the possibility of non-precious metals as active materials for ORR catalysts, starting from Co phthalocyanine as ORR catalyst and the development of methodologies (e.g., metal-coordinated N-containing polymers, metal-organic frameworks) to form active sites, M-N_x moieties. Thereafter, the motivation, procedures, and progress of the latest research on the design of catalyst morphology for improved mass transport ability and active site engineering that allowed the promoted ORR kinetics were discussed.