Synthesis and properties of novel N/Ta-co-doped TiO2 coating on titanium in simulated PEMFC environment

In order to solve the corrosion and passivation of metal bipolar plates, in present study, a novel N/Ta-co-doped TiO2 coating (TOTaN) on Ti was developed through sol-gel method to achieve Ta doping and further heat treatment to achieve N doping. The TOTaN coating enhanced the conductivity of TiO2 through lattice distortion caused by ions doping and creation of Ti3+ through the reduction of Ti4+. The interfacial contact resistance (ICR) of the TOTaN coating is about 0.071 Omega cm(2). Meanwhile, the corrosion behavior in simulated cathode environment is also investigated. The TOTaN coating can provide effective protection for 240 h immersion in 0.1 M HCl solution. (C) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

A novel N/Ta-co-doped TiO2 coating (TOTaN) was developed on Ti through sol-gel method to solve the corrosion and passivation of metal bipolar plates. The TOTaN coating enhanced the conductivity of TiO2 and showed excellent corrosion protection in a simulated cathode environment.