Cathode diffusion layer and current collector with slotted foam stainless steel for a micro direct methanol fuel cell

In order to reduce the contact and mass transfer impedance of the diffusion layer and current collector of a Micro Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (mu DMFC), a novel Membrane Electrode Assembly (MEA) structure is designed by using Foam Stainless Steel (FSS) with a slotting rate of 38.47% for both the cathode diffusion layer and the current collector. Electrochemical tests are performed on the Foam Stainless Steel Membrane Electrode Assembly (FSS-MEA) and the Conventional Carbon Paper Membrane Electrode Assembly (CCP-MEA) mu DMFCs. The experimental results show that the maximum power density of FSS-MEA mu DMFC is 46.55 mW cm(-2) at 343 K, which is 42.88% higher than that of CCP-MEA mu DMFC, and the optimum working concentration of FSS-MEA mu DMFC is 2.5 mol L-1, which is 1 mol L-1 higher than that of CCP-MEA mu DMFC. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) test results show that the contact impedance of FSS-MEA mu DMFC is 0.55 omega cm(-2), which is 15.38% lower than that of CCP-MEA mu DMFC. The mass transfer impedance of FSS-MEA mu DMFC is 0.99 omega cm(-2), which is 25.56% lower than that of CCP-MEA mu DMFC. This implies that the novel slotted FSS-MEA structure alleviates the methanol crossover and reduces the contact and mass transfer impedance, thus improving mu DMFC power density.

Automated summary

In this study, a novel Membrane Electrode Assembly (MEA) structure using Foam Stainless Steel (FSS) for the diffusion layer and current collector of a Micro Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (μDMFC) was designed. Experimental results showed that the FSS-MEA μDMFC exhibited higher maximum power density and optimum working concentration compared to the Conventional Carbon Paper Membrane Electrode Assembly (CCP-MEA) μDMFC. Furthermore, the FSS-MEA structure reduced the contact and mass transfer impedance, leading to improved power density of the μDMFC.