The Effects of Cathode Parameters on the Performance of Poly(2,5-Benzimidazole)-Based Polymer ElectrolyteMembrane Fuel Cell

The effects of electrode parameters on membrane
electrode assembly performance including Pt loading, hydrophobicity
during heat treatment, catalyst layer thickness and
the amount of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) in the cathode
are investigated. The fuel cell performance is maximized via
catalyst utilization by optimizing the phosphoric acid content
in the electrodes. Heat treatment of gas diffusion electrode
results in an increase in hydrophobicity and a decrease in
phosphoric acid content in the catalyst layer, which drastically
affects the fuel cell performance. In our conditions, a maximum
fuel cell performance of 270 mW cm−2 was achieved at
160 °C with air using 1 mg Pt cm−2 total catalyst loading
(20 % PTFE). The fuel cell performance and the poisoning
effect of carbon monoxide in poly(2,5-benzimidazole)
(ABPBI)-membrane-based high-temperature membrane electrode
assemblies were investigated with respect to carbon
monoxide concentrations. Fuel cell performance of Pt alloys
(Pt-Cu/C, Pt-Fe/C, Pt-Ni/C) is compared with that of Pt/C at
temperatures between 140 and 180 °C. It was observed that
Pt-Cu/C alloy catalysts exhibit higher performance with lower
catalyst loadings (0.4 mg Pt cm−2) than Pt/C catalyst. The
performance of alloy catalysts follows the order of Pt-Cu/C>
Pt-Fe/C>Pt-Ni/C>Pt/C.