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Gas Diffusion Media for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells Made from Carbon Fibers with Controlled Conductivity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 February 2012

Paul Nicotera ,
Robert Evans ,
Christopher Weaver  and
Po-Ya Abel Chuang
Paul Nicotera
Affiliation:
General Motors Corporation, Electrochemical Energy Research Lab, 10 Carriage Street, Honeoye Falls, NY 14472, U.S.A.
Robert Evans
Affiliation:
Engineered Fibers Technology, LLC, 88 Long Hill Cross Road, Shelton, CT 06484, U.S.A.
Christopher Weaver
Affiliation:
Engineered Fibers Technology, LLC, 88 Long Hill Cross Road, Shelton, CT 06484, U.S.A.
Po-Ya Abel Chuang
Affiliation:
Graduate Institute of Energy Engineering, National Central University, 300 Jhongda Road, Jhongli City, Taoyuan, 32001 Taiwan
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Abstract

Samples of carbon fiber were prepared from polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based precursors, covering a range of electrical resistivity from 0.9 to 1,000 mΩ cm corresponding to a range of carbonization heat treatment temperatures (HTT) estimated to be between 700 and 2600°C. Experimental gas diffusion media (GDM) were made from these fibers using conventional phenolic resin/carbon fiber construction, prepared at two different carbonization temperatures (950 and 2150°C). GDM thermal and electrical properties displayed similar trends with respect to fiber and paper HTT. Unexpectedly, GDM bending and shear moduli increased with fiber resistivity, possibly due to shortening of the lower resistivity fiber types during GDM production. Results showed that high HTT of either the carbon fiber or the paper was sufficient to enable average (“wet” and “dry”) 5-cm2 fuel cell performance comparable to current state-of-the-art GDM. A proprietary GDM wet-laid production model predicts a potential cost reduction of about 2% at 20 million m2 annual production by reducing the paper HTT.

Keywords

carbonizationdiffusionelectrical properties
Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1384: Symposium B – Advanced Materials for Fuel Cells , 2012 , mrsf11-1384-b16-04
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2012

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References

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