Enhancing the properties of water and gas management for proton exchange membrane fuel cells via tailored intersected cracks in a microporous layer

Abstract

The microporous layer (MPL) is a crucial structure for water and gas management in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). The effect of cracks introduced during the preparation of the MPL on the water and gas management of the PEMFC cannot be ignored. In this paper, the drying temperature is employed to quantitatively control the ratio of the intersected crack area (RICA) on the MPL. MPLs with RICA values from 3.4% to 7.3% are prepared. The RICA simultaneously enhances the water and gas permeability of the MPL. Moreover, with an increase in the RICA, the current density of the dry-wet boundary of the oxygen transport resistance moves in the higher direction. Meanwhile, the output performance is also promoted with the increase in the RICA. All findings suggest that intersected cracks are beneficial for improving MPL water and gas management.