Characterization of Ti3SiC2-coating on stainless steel bipolar plates in simulated proton exchange membrane fuel cell environments

Ti3SiC2-phase-coating is considered as a candidate for protective coating on bipolar plates in proton exchange membrane fuel cells with good corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity. In this work, Ti-Si-C coatings are prepared on stainless steel substrates by direct current and pulse magnetron sputtering, followed by vacuum heat-treatment to generate Ti3SiC2. Our findings indicate that the Ti3SiC2 coatings exhibit an excellent contact resistance and a good anticorrosion performance with low corrosion current densities in simulated proton exchange membrane fuel cells environments.