Characterization of Uncoated Stainless Steel as Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Bipolar Plates Material

Thanks to their high conductivity, important gas tightness, good corrosion resistance, and low-cost manufacturing pathways, stainless steels are considered as good candidates for proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) bipolar plates materials. In this study, a proprietary alloy was identified as very promising: its initial electrical contact resistance (ECR) with the gas diffusion layer was low, while its corrosion resistance in simulated PEMFC environment was sufficient. Furthermore, the ECR did not increase dramatically during long-term potentiostatic and potentiodynamic polarizations in simulated PEMFC cathode and anode environments. Finally, the stainless steel was successfully tested for 3,000?h in a commercial system using a 16-cell stack, without detrimental cell voltage losses.