Carbon matrix effects on the micro-structure and performance of Pt nanowire cathode prepared by decal transfer method

High performance cathode for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell was prepared by depositing Pt nanowires in a carbon matrix coated on a substrate, and using decal transfer method to fabricate the membrane electrode assembly. The effects of carbon and ionomer contents on the electrode micro-structure and fuel cell performance are investigated by physical characterization and single cell testing. The Pt nanowires are gradient distributed across the cathode thickness, and more Pt exists near the membrane. Both the carbon and ionomer contents can affect the Pt nanowires distribution and aggregation. In addition, the carbon loading dominates the transport distance of gas and proton, and the ionomer content affects the triple phase boundaries and porosity in the cathode. The optimal structure of Pt nanowire cathode is obtained at 0.10 mg·cm^-2 carbon loading and 10 wt% ionomer.

In situ grown nanoscale platinum on carbon powder as catalyst layer in proton exchange membrane fuel cells(PEMFCs)

An extensive study has been conducted on the proton exchange membrane fuel cells （PEMFCs） with reducing Pt loading. This is commonly achieved by developing methods to increase the utilization of the platinum in the catalyst layer of the electrodes. In this paper, a novel process of the catalyst layers was introduced and investigated. A mixture of carbon powder and Nafion solution was sprayed on the glassy carbon electrode （GCE） to form a thin carbon layer. Then Pt particles were deposited on the surface by reducing hexachloroplatinic （IV） acid hexahydrate with methanoic acid. SEM images showed a continuous Pt gradient profile among the thickness direction of the catalytic layer by the novel method. The Pt nanowires grown are in the size of 3 nm （diameter） x l0 nm （length） by high solution TEM image. The novel catalyst layer was characterized by cyclic voltammetry （CV） and scanning electron microscope （SEM） as compared with commercial Pt/C black and Pt catalyst layer obtained from sputtering. The results showed that the platinum nanoparticles deposited on the carbon powder were highly utilized as they directly faced the gas diffusion layer and offered easy access to reactants （oxygen or hydrogen）.

A maximum power point tracker for photovoltaic energy systems based on fuzzy neural networks

To extract the maximum power from a photovoltaic(PV) energy system,the real-time maximum power point(MPP) of the PV array must be tracked closely. The non-linear and time-variant characteristics of the PV array and the non-linear and non-minimum phase characteristics of a boost converter make it difficult to track the MPP for traditional control strategies. We propose a fuzzy neural network controller(FNNC),which combines the reasoning capability of fuzzy logical systems and the learning capability of neural networks,to track the MPP. With a derived learning algorithm,the parameters of the FNNC are updated adaptively. A gradient estimator based on a radial basis function neural network is developed to provide the reference information to the FNNC. Simulation results show that the proposed control algorithm provides much better tracking performance compared with the fuzzy logic control algorithm.

Study on the growth of platinum nanowires as cathode catalysts in proton exchange membrane fuel cells

The platinum nanowires have been verified to be a promising catalyst to promote the performance of proton exchange membrane fuel cells.In this paper,accurately controlled growth of nanowires in a carbon matrix is achieved for reducing Pt loading.The effects of formic acid concentration and reaction temperature on the morphology and size of the Pt nanowires,as well as their electrochemical performances in a single cell,are investigated.The results showed that the increase in the formic acid concentration results in a volcano trend with the length of Pt nanowires.With increasing reduction temperature,the diameter of Pt nanowires increases while Pt particles evolve from one-dimensional to zero-dimensional up to 40°C.A mechanism of the Pt nanowires growth is proposed.The optimized Pt nanowires electrode exhibits a power density(based on electrochemical active surface area)79%higher than conventional Pt/C one.The control strategy obtained contributes to the design and control of novel nanostructures in nano-synthesis and catalyst applications.

Cathode Design for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells in Automotive Applications

An advanced cathode design can improve the power performance and durability of proton exchange membrane fuel cells(PEMFCs),thus reducing the stack cost of fuel cell vehicles(FCVs).Recent studies on highly active Pt alloy catalysts,short-side-chain polyfluorinated sulfonic acid(PFSA)ionomer and 3D-ordered electrodes have imparted PEMFCs with boosted power density.To achieve the compacted stack target of 6 kW/L or above for the wide commercialization of FCVs,developing available cathodes for high-power-density operation is critical for the PEMFC.However,current developments still remain extremely challenging with respect to highly active and stable catalysts in practical operation,controlled distribution of ionomer on the catalyst surface for reducing catalyst poisoning and oxygen penetration losses and 3D(three-dimensional)-ordered catalyst layers with low Knudsen diffusion losses of oxygen molecular.This review paper focuses on impacts of the cathode development on automotive fuel cell systems and concludes design directions to provide the greatest benefit.