Water management characteristics of electrospun micro-porous layer in PEMFC under normal temperature and cold start conditions

Micro-porous layer (MPL) is the key component in proton exchange membrane fuel cell for water management. Electrospinning technique, providing a novel nanofiber structure, is recently used to fabricate MPL which gave improved fuel cell performance at normal temperature operation. However, underlying causes are not well understood, and no attempt has been made to study its effects on the cold start performance. In this work, electrospun MPL using non-toxic solvent was fabricated, and water management charac-teristics under both normal temperature and cold start conditions were compared with commercial MPL using the same catalyst coated membrane (CCM). Electrospun MPL out-performed the commercial MPL at 70 degrees C under high relative humilities due to marked reduction in mass transport losses. Under cold start conditions, fuel cell with electrospun MPL generated electricity for a longer time, possibly due to better interfacial connection, which facilitated water removal from catalyst layer. (C) 2020 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Electrospun MPL showed better performance under high relative humidities at 70 degrees Celsius, reducing mass transport losses and improving fuel cell efficiency. In cold start conditions, electrospun MPL may facilitate water removal from the catalyst layer, leading to longer electricity generation in fuel cells.