A direct borohydride fuel cell with a polymer fiber membrane and non-noble metal catalysts

Polymer electrolyte membranes (PEM) and Pt-based catalysts are two crucial components which determine the properties and price of fuel cells. Even though, PEM faces problem of fuel crossover in liquid fuel cells such as direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) and direct borohydride fuel cell (DBFC), which lowers power output greatly. Here, we report a DBFC in which a polymer fiber membrane (PFM) was used, and metal oxides, such as LaNiO3 and MnO2, were used as cathode catalysts, meanwhile CoO was used as anode catalyst. Peak power density of 663 mW·cm−2 has been achieved at 65°C, which increases by a factor of 1.7–3.7 compared with classic DBFCs. This fuel cell structure can also be extended to other liquid fuel cells, such as DMFC.

[1]  Brian D. James,et al.  Mass Production Cost Estimation for Direct H2 PEM Fuel Cell Systems for Automotive Applications. 2008 Update , 2010 .

[2]  M. Ha,et al.  Performance enhancement of a direct borohydride fuel cell in practical running conditions , 2008 .

[3]  Jia Ma,et al.  A comprehensive review of direct borohydride fuel cells , 2010 .

[4]  Piotr Zelenay,et al.  Recent advances in non-precious metal catalysis for oxygen-reduction reaction in polymer electrolyte fuel cells , 2011 .

[5]  Juan Herranz,et al.  Iron-based cathode catalyst with enhanced power density in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. , 2011, Nature communications.

[6]  P. Zhang,et al.  A Membraneless Direct Borohydride Fuel Cell Using LaNiO3‐Catalysed Cathode , 2008 .

[7]  Nigel P. Brandon,et al.  An improved cathode for alkaline fuel cells , 2010 .

[8]  Gang Wu,et al.  High-Performance Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction Derived from Polyaniline, Iron, and Cobalt , 2011, Science.

[9]  Jai-Young Lee,et al.  The Characterization of an Alkaline Fuel Cell That Uses Hydrogen Storage Alloys , 2002 .

[10]  Philip N. Ross,et al.  Improved Oxygen Reduction Activity on Pt3Ni(111) via Increased Surface Site Availability , 2007, Science.

[11]  X. Ai,et al.  A simple and high efficient direct borohydride fuel cell with MnO2-catalyzed cathode , 2005 .

[12]  M. D. Rooij,et al.  Electrochemical Methods: Fundamentals and Applications , 2003 .

[13]  Lianbang Wang,et al.  Rare earth hydrogen storage alloy used in borohydride fuel cells , 2005 .

[14]  C. Oloman,et al.  A Swiss-roll liquid–gas mixed-reactant fuel cell , 2012 .

[15]  Younan Xia,et al.  Pd-Pt Bimetallic Nanodendrites with High Activity for Oxygen Reduction , 2009, Science.

[16]  Frédéric Jaouen,et al.  Iron-Based Catalysts with Improved Oxygen Reduction Activity in Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells , 2009, Science.

[17]  Yongning Liu,et al.  Iron phthalocyanine as a cathode catalyst for a direct borohydride fuel cell , 2007 .

[18]  Mark W. Verbrugge,et al.  A Mathematical Model of the Solid‐Polymer‐Electrolyte Fuel Cell , 1992 .

[19]  Christophe Coutanceau,et al.  Life time test in direct borohydride fuel cell system , 2009 .

[20]  Chun–Chen Yang,et al.  Quaternized poly(vinyl alcohol)/alumina composite polymer membranes for alkaline direct methanol fuel cells , 2010 .

[21]  Umit B. Demirci,et al.  Direct borohydride fuel cell: Main issues met by the membrane–electrodes-assembly and potential solutions , 2007 .

[22]  B. Liu,et al.  Electrocatalysts for the anodic oxidation of borohydrides , 2004 .

[23]  B. Smitha,et al.  Solid polymer electrolyte membranes for fuel cell applications¿a review , 2005 .

[24]  Chun–Chen Yang,et al.  Direct methanol fuel cell based on poly(vinyl alcohol)/titanium oxide nanotubes/poly(styrene sulfonic acid) (PVA/nt-TiO2/PSSA) composite polymer membrane , 2010 .

[25]  Y. Liu,et al.  Study of CoO as an anode catalyst for a membraneless direct borohydride fuel cell , 2010 .

[26]  Zhongjian Li,et al.  Depression of hydrogen evolution during operation of a direct borohydride fuel cell , 2006 .

[27]  Jung-Ho Wee,et al.  Which type of fuel cell is more competitive for portable application: Direct methanol fuel cells or direct borohydride fuel cells? , 2006 .

[28]  A S Bondarenko,et al.  Alloys of platinum and early transition metals as oxygen reduction electrocatalysts. , 2009, Nature chemistry.

[29]  Yan Liu,et al.  Study of LaCoO3 as a cathode catalyst for a membraneless direct borohydride fuel cell , 2009 .

[30]  Yongning Liu,et al.  A simple direct borohydride fuel cell with a cobalt phthalocyanine catalyzed cathode , 2008 .

[31]  Chun–Chen Yang.  Fabrication and characterization of poly(vinyl alcohol)/montmorillonite/poly(styrene sulfonic acid) proton-conducting composite membranes for direct methanol fuel cells , 2011 .

[32]  Lin-nan Zhang,et al.  Membrane combination technic on treatment and reuse of high ammonia and salts wastewater in rare earth manufacture process , 2010 .

[33]  B. Liu,et al.  Performance improvement of a micro borohydride fuel cell operating at ambient conditions , 2005 .

[34]  L. Gubler,et al.  Trends for fuel cell membrane development , 2010 .

[35]  Z. Li,et al.  Effects of heat treatment on the structure, morphology and electrocatalytic activity of cobalt hydroxide electrocatalyst , 2010 .