Abstract
To achieve the goal of decarbonizing the heavy-duty transport sector, polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells need to be commercialized, and manufacturing processes must be optimized to meet the demands of industrial upscaling. By joining the anode and cathode gas diffusion layers (GDL) to the 5-layer membrane electrode assembly (MEA), the number of repeating units for the subsequent stacking process can be reduced from four to two. Hence, the stacking process time based on pick-and-place operations can be reduced by almost half. In the joined state, the relatively rigid GDL can also protect the fragile CCM from potential material damage caused by handling processes during stacking. Both literature and patent screening were conducted on possible joining options between the GDL and the 5-layer MEA. A low viscosity UV-activated adhesive was selected for the systematic investigation of the joining process. In order to achieve a highly precise and repeatable adhesive dispensing process within the scope of a roll-to-roll (R2R) MEA assembly system, a semi-automatic test rig was designed and built to bond the GDL to the 5-layer MEA. Various criteria for evaluating adhesive joint were analyzed and pre-selected, taking into account the economic factor, the quality of the joint, and the influence on downstream processes. A pre-activation strategy was deployed to successfully compensate for the adhesive absorption effect of the GDL due to its porous structure. A parameter combination of mass flow rate, joint design, applied pressure and curing strategy was found, where the adhesive bond between the GDL and the subgasket was sufficient for further manufacturing processes. With the developed joining process and the test rig, it is possible to create industrial process-like conditions and transfer the results to an industrial R2R MEA assembly process.© 2024 The Authors, Published by Elsevier B.V.5
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