Themed collection Fuel cells – Topic Highlight

Water distribution in the microporous layer (MPL) and the gas diffusion layer (GDL) substrate during PEFC operation at different conditions is quantitatively measured by X-ray tomographic microscopy (XTM) with time resolution down to a few seconds to probe the underlying water transport mechanism.

This work highlights how the different environment of the catalyst in GDE and MEA evaluation results in different trends of catalyst layer activity towards the oxygen reduction reaction being observed with both techniques.

The surface of pristine graphene is engineered toward hydrophilicity by interfacing with amphiphilic PTEBS molecules, creating a new class of water-redispersible graphene with high conductivity and electrocatalytic activity for energy applications.

This work underscores the relationship between the mechanical properties of anion exchange membranes and pH, which together can have a profound effect on the power output of the fuel cells.

Spherical GDC particles favour high number of electrochemical reaction sites (ers) and the breathing structure for fast ionic conduction in LSC phase, driven by the indirect modification of the cobalt's chemical speciation in LSC.

This study measures acoustic activity from a PEM fuel cell as a dynamic response during potentiostatic and galvanostatic operations of the cell.

The sulfonated polyphenylene ionomer, SPP-QP, being used as the anode binder, improves the durability of polymer electrolyte fuel cells in the gas exchange cycle test simulating start-up conditions.