• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2006.06a
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• pp.99-102
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• 2006

Optimal flow-field design of bipolar-plates for a commercial class PEM(polymer electrolyte membrane) fuel cell stack was carried out on the basis of three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics(CFD) simulation. A three-dimensional CFD model originally developed by Shimpalee et al., has been utilized for performing large-scale simulation of a single fuel cell consisting of bipolar-plates gas diffusion layers, and a membrane-electrode-assembly(MEA). The CFD model is able to predict the current density, pressure drops, gas velocities, vapor and liquid water contents, temperature distributions, etc. inside a single fuel cell. Depending on simulation results from the CFD modeling of a PEM fuel cell, several flow-fields of bipolar-plates were designed and verified. The final design of the bipolar-plate has been chosen from the simulations and experimental tests and showed the best performance as expected from the simulation results under a normal operating condition. Thus, the CFD simulation approach to design the optimal flow-field of the bipolar-plates was successful. The final design was adopted as the best flow-field to build a commercial scale PEM fuel cell stack, the performance of which shows about 42% higher than that of the older bipolar-plate design.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.65-73
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• 2012

The Gas Diffusion Layer (GDL) of fuel cell, are required to provide both delivery of reactant gases to the catalyst layer and removal of water in either vapor or liquid form in typical PEMFCs. In this study, the fabrication of GDL containing Micro Porous Layer (MPL) made of the slurry of PVDF mixed with carbon black is investigated in detail. Physical properties of GDL containing MPL, such as electrical resistance, gas permeability and microstructure were examined, and the performance of the cell using developed GDL with MPL was evaluated. The results show that MPL with PVDF binder demonstrated uniformly distributed microstructure without large cracks and pores, which resulted in better electrical conductivity. The fuel cell performance test demonstrates that the developed GDL with MPL has a great potential due to enhanced mass transport property due to its porous structure and small pore size.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.279-284
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• 2021

The high theoretical specific capacity of lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries makes them a more promising energy storage system than conventional lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). However, the slow kinetics of the electrochemical conversion reaction seriously hinders the utilization of Li-S as an active battery material and has prevented the successful application of Li-S cells. Therefore, exploration of alternatives that can overcome the sluggish electrochemical reaction is necessary to increase the performance of Li-S batteries. In this work, an ionic liquid (IL) is proposed as a functional additive to promote the electrochemical reactivity of the Li-S cell. The sluggish electrochemical reaction is mainly caused by precipitation of low-order polysulfide (l-PS) onto the positive electrode, so the IL is adopted as a solubilizer to remove the precipitated l-PS from the positive electrode to promote additional electron transfer reactions. The ILs effectively dissolve l-PS and greatly improve the electrochemical performance by allowing greater utilization of l-PS, which results in a higher initial specific capacity, together with a moderate retention rate. The results presented here confirmed that the use of an IL as an additive is quite effective at enhancing the overall performance of the Li-S cell and this understanding will enable the construction of highly efficient Li-S batteries.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.76-87
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• 2022

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have attracted much interest for their high energy density (>150 mAh/g), high capacity, low self-discharge rate, and high coulombic efficiency. However, with the successful commercialization of LIBs, fire and explosion incidents are likely to increase. The thermal runaway is known as the major factor in battery-related accidents that can lead to a series of critical conditions. Considering this, recent studies have shown an increased interest in countering the safety issues associated with LIBs. Although safety standards for LIB use have recently been formulated, little attention has been paid to the safety around the manufacturing process for battery products. The present study introduces a risk assessment method suitable for assessing the safety of the LIB-manufacturing process. In the assessment method, a compensation parameter (Z-factor) is employed to correctly evaluate the process's safety on the basis of the type of material (e.g., metal anode, liquid electrolyte, solid-state electrolytes) utilized in a cell. The proposed method has been applied to an 18650 cell-manufacturing process, and three sub-processes have been identified as possibly vulnerable parts (risk index: >4). This study offers some crucial insights into the establishment of safety standards for battery-manufacturing processes.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.23-29
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• 2024

This study investigates the effect of the microstructure of Li_1.3Al_0.3Ti_1.7(PO₄)₃ (LATP), a solid electrolyte, on its ionic conductivity. Solid electrolytes, a key component in electrochemical energy storage devices such as batteries, differ from traditional liquid electrolytes by utilizing solid-state ionic conductors. LATP, characterized by its NASICON structure, facilitates rapid lithium-ion movement and exhibits relatively high ionic conductivity, chemical stability, and good electrochemical compatibility. In this study, the microstructure and ionic conductivity of LATP specimens sintered at 850, 900, and 950℃ for various sintering times are analyzed. The results indicate that the changes in the microstructure due to sintering temperature and time significantly affect ionic conductivity. Notably, the specimens sintered at 900℃ for 30 min exhibit high ionic conductivity. This study presents a method to optimize the ionic conductivity of LATP. Additionally, it underscores the need for a deeper understanding of the Li-ion diffusion mechanism and quantitative microstructure analysis.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2010

In the present work, an electrowinning process in the LiCl-KCl/Cd system is considered to model and analyze the electrotransport of the actinide and rare-earth elements. A simple dynamic modeling of this process was performed by taking into account the material balances and diffusion-controlled electrochemical reactions in a diffusion boundary layer at an electrode interface between the molten salt electrolyte and liquid cadmium cathode. The proposed modeling approach was based on the half-cell reduction reactions of metal chloride occurring on the cathode. This model demonstrated a capability for the prediction of the concentration behaviors, a faradic current of each element and an electrochemical potential as function of the time up to the corresponding electrotransport satisfying a given applied current based on a galvanostatic electrolysis. The results of selected case studies including five elements (U, Pu, Am, La, Nd) system are shown, and a preliminary simulation is carried out to show how the model can be used to understand the electrochemical characteristics and provide better information for developing an advanced electrowinner.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.258-263
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• 2023

In this study, conductive polymers and the enzyme tyrosinase (Tyr) were deposited on the surface of a screen printed carbon electrode (SPCE), which can be fabricated as a disposable sensor chip, and applied to the detection of bisphenol F (BPF), an endocrine disruptor with proven links to male diseases and thyroid disorders, using electrochemical methods. On the surface of the SPCE working electrode, which was negatively charged by oxygen plasma treatment, a positively charged conductive polymer, poly(diallyldimethyl ammonium chloride) (PDDA), a negatively charged polymer compound, poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSS), and another layer of PDDA were layered by electrostatic attraction in the order of PDDA, PSS, and finally PDDA. Then, a layer of Tyr, which was negatively charged due to pH adjustment to 7.0, was added to create a PDDA-PSS-PDDA-Tyr sensor for BPF. When the electrode sensor is exposed to a BPF solution, which is the substrate and target analyte, 4,4'-methylenebis(cyclohexa-3,5-diene-1,2-dione) is generated by an oxidation reaction with the Tyr enzyme on the electrode surface. The reduction process of the product at 0.1 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) generating 4,4'-methylenebis(benzene-1,2-diol) was measured using cyclic and differential pulse voltammetries, resulting in a change in the peak current with respect to the concentration of BPF. In addition, we compared the detection performance of BPF using an ionic liquid electrolyte as an alternative to phosphate-buffered saline, which has been used in many previous sensing studies. Furthermore, the selectivity of bisphenol S, which acts as an interfering substance with a similar structure to BPF, was investigated. Finally, we demonstrated the practical applicability of the sensor by applying it to analyze the concentration of BPF in real samples prepared in the laboratory.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.9-17
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• 2010

The LCC (Liquid Cadmium Cathode) structure to be developed for inhibiting the formation and growth of the uranium dendrite has been known as a key part in the electrowinning process for the simultaneous recovering of uranium and TRU (TRans Uranium) elements from spent fuels. A zinc-gallium (Zn-Ga) experimental system which is able to be functional in aqueous condition and normal temperature has been set up to observe the formation and growth phenomena of the metal dendrites on liquid cathode. The growth of the zinc dendrites on the gallium cathode and the performance of the existing stirrer type and pounder type cathode structure were observed. Although the mechanical strength of the dendrites appeared to be weak in the electrolyte and easily crashed by the various cathode structures, it was difficult to effectively submerge the dendrite into the bottom of the liquid cathode. Based on the results of the aqueous phase experiments, a lab-scale electrowinning experimental apparatus which are applicable to the development of LCC srtucture for the electrowinning process was established and the performance tests of the different types of LCC structure were conducted to prohibit the uranium dendrite growth on LCC surface. The experimental results of the stirrer type LCC structures have shown that they could not effectively remove the uranium dendrites growing at the inner side of the LCC crucible and the performances of the paddle and harrow type LCC structure were similar. Therefore a mesh type LCC structure was developed to push down the uranium dendrites to the bottom of the LCC crucible growing on the LCC surface and at the inner side of the crucible. From the experimental results for the performance test of the mesh type LCC structure, the uranium was recovered over 5 wt% in cadmium without the growth of uranium dendrites. After completion of the experiments, solid precipitates of the bottom of the LCC crucible were identified as an intermetallic compound (UCd11) by the chemical analysis.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.103-110
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• 2014

In the study, a room temperature ionic liquids as a co-solvent was used to evaluate the feasibility with various electrodes in Li-ion batteries. 1-Ethyl-1-methyl piperidinium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl) imide(PP12 TFSI) is an ionic liquid that melts at $85^{\circ}C$. Pure PP12 TFSI is not able to be used as an electrolyte because it is a solid salt at room temperature. PP12 TFSI is mixed with EC/DEC(1/1 vol.%) to prepare mixed solvents. The electrolyte 1.5M $LiPF_6$ in a mixed solvent having 44 wt.% PP12 TFSI is prepared to evaluated the various electrodes. The electrolytes provides good cycles life of cells with $LiNi_{0.5}Mn_{1.5}O_4(LNMO)$, $LiFePO_4(LFP)$, $Li_4Ti_5O_{12}(LTO)$ and artificial graphite. Further improvement of the cell performances can be accomplished by enhancing wettability of electrolytes to electrodes.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.31-37
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• 2012

As a recovery of elemental silicon from the sludge of Si wafer process, a process of mechanical separation-chlorine roasting-electrolysis has been suggested. The silicon sludge consisted of Si, SiC, machine oil, and metallic impurities. The oil and metal impurities was removed by mechanical separation. The Si-SiC mixture was converted to silicon chloride by chlorine roasting at $1000^{\circ}C$ for 1 hr and the silicon chloride was dissolved into an ionic liquid of $[Bmpy]Tf_2N$ as an electrolyte. Cyclic voltammetry results showed an wide voltage window of pure $[Bmpy]Tf_2N$ and a reduction peak of elemental Si from $[Bmpy]Tf_2N$ dissolved $SiCl_4$ on Au electrode, respectively. The silicon deposits could be prepared on the Au electrode by the potentiostatic electrolysis of -1.9 V vs. Pt-QRE. The elemental silicon uniformly electrodeposited was confirmed by various analytical techniques including XRD, FE-SEM with EDS, and XPS. Any impurity was not detected except trace oxygen contaminated during handling for analysis.