Abstract
By combining molecular simulations and experimental measurements, the effect of the Nafion content on the performance of proton-exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) is explained from the perspective of the triple-phase boundary (TPB). The evaporation process of Nafion solvent is simulated on a triple-phase model to mimic the formation of the TPB, and the influence of the Nafion content on the TPB structure is investigated. When the Nafion content is 1.415 mg/m2, the coverages of Nafion on both Pt particles and the carbon carrier are saturated at 42.1% and 32.7%, respectively. With the increase of Nafion content, the amount of water molecules around Pt particles is increased, and the surrounding O2 content is decreased. The experimental PEMFC performance has confirmed such simulation results, which demonstrates a trend of enhancing first and then weakening with the increase of Nafion content and reaches a maximum with the Nafion content of 2.96 mg/m2. Therefore, the correlation between the structure of the TPB and the cell's efficiency has been established at a molecular level, enabling enhancements in the design of the TPB morphology and an increase in PEMFC efficiency.
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