Development of High Performance MEA by Decal Method for PEM Fuel Cell

Abstract

This study has focused on the development of high performance membrane-electrode assemblies (MEAs) fabricated by decal method for proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). To study the effect of ionomer contents on performance, we fabricated MEAs with several electrodes which were prepared by varying the quantity of ionomer from 20 wt.% to 45 wt.% in catalyst layer. The MEA performance was obtained through single cell test. The MEA prepared from electrode with 25wt.% of ionomer showed the best performance. We evaluated the surface area and pore volume of electrode with BET. We found that the surface area and pore volume in electrode decreased rapidly at the electrode with 40wt.% of ionomer in catalyst layer. MEA was fabricated by roll laminator machine and the roll laminating conditions for the preparation of MEA, such as laminating press, temperature and speed, were optimized. The MEA performance is not affected by laminating temperature and speed, but roll laminating press have a great effect on MEA performance.