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Fuel cell performance using a phosphonated polysulphone ionomer (PSUgPVPA) in the PEM cathode electrode

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Author

  • Rakel Wreland Lindström
  • Luis Guerrero Aguinaga
  • Alejandro Oyarce
  • Diego Ubeda
  • Mark Ingratta
  • Patric Jannasch
  • Göran Lindbergh

Summary, in English

Inexpensive and environmentally friendly electrolyte polymers that can be operated at higher temperatures and drier conditions are highly interesting for PEM fuel cells for automotive, portable power and stationary electricity generation applications. In this study an ionomer based on polysulfone grafted with poly(vinylphosphonic acid) (PSUgPVPA) in the cathode Pt/C catalyst layer (CL) was electrochemically characterized and compared to Nafion. The performance at different levels of humidity at 80 ºC was evaluated by polarization and cyclic voltammetry. The results show that the performance of the PSUgPVPA-based cathode CL is comparable to that of Nafion at 100% relative humidity (RH) but with some instabilities. However, at drier conditions significant losses of performance for the PSUgPVPA-based cathode was observed, concomitant to a reduced electrochemical surface area. The lower performance at low humidity is concluded to be due to a combination of lower proton conductivity and wettability or interference with oxygen reduction reaction at lower RH.

Publishing year

2013

Language

English

Pages

33-45

Publication/Series

ECS Transactions

Volume

45

Issue

23

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Electrochemical Society

Topic

  • Chemical Sciences

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1938-6737