Investigation of acidic methanol solution as a fuel for microchannel fuel cells

Acidic methanol solutions have been investigated for use in direct methanol microchannel fuel cells. The increased proton conductivity of a methanol solution containing sulfuric acid enables the anode to be constructed with the catalyst separated from the proton exchange membrane. This approach could be especially useful in the fabrication of thin-film microchannel fuel cells where a more complex carbon fabric electrode is not possible. The performance of sequential build-up fuel cells was shown to be improved by depositing an additional layer of Pt/Ru on the side-walls of the anode microchannels opposite the membrane. Results from anode half-cell and full cell experiments are reported.

[1]  C. Pu,et al.  Carbon supported and unsupported Pt–Ru anodes for liquid feed direct methanol fuel cells , 1998 .

[2]  Paul A. Christensen,et al.  An in situ FTIR study of the electrochemical oxidation of methanol at small platinum particles , 1994 .

[3]  S. Srinivasan,et al.  International activities in DMFC R&D: status of technologies and potential applications , 2004 .

[4]  Helmut Baltruschat,et al.  Methanol oxidation on Pt, PtRu, and colloidal Pt electrocatalysts: a DEMS study of product formation , 2001 .

[5]  Wenjie Zhu,et al.  Influence of preparation process of MEA with mesocarbon microbeads supported Pt–Ru catalysts on methanol electrooxidation , 2002 .

[6]  Kaspar Andreas Friedrich,et al.  Performance and methanol permeation of direct methanol fuel cells: dependence on operating conditions and on electrode structure , 2004 .

[7]  Antonino S. Aricò,et al.  DMFCs: From Fundamental Aspects to Technology Development , 2001 .

[8]  R. Savinell,et al.  Evaluation of a Sol-Gel Derived Nafion/Silica Hybrid Membrane for Proton Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell Applications: I. Proton Conductivity and Water Content , 2001 .

[9]  Masahiro Watanabe,et al.  Direct methanol oxidation on platinum electrodes with ruthenium adatoms in hot phosphoric acid , 1997 .

[10]  Frédéric Maillard,et al.  Preparation of methanol oxidation electrocatalysts: ruthenium deposition on carbon-supported platinum nanoparticles , 2003 .

[11]  G. G. Stokes "J." , 1890, The New Yale Book of Quotations.

[12]  S. Wasmus,et al.  Methanol oxidation and direct methanol fuel cells: a selective review 1 In honour of Professor W. Vi , 1999 .

[13]  Andrzej Wieckowski,et al.  Reactivity and activation parameters in methanol oxidation on platinum single crystal electrodes ‘decorated’ by ruthenium adlayers , 1999 .

[14]  R. Manoharan,et al.  Investigation of methanol oxidation on unsupported platinum electrodes in strong alkali and strong acid , 1998 .

[15]  Kai Sundmacher,et al.  Dynamics of the direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC): experiments and model-based analysis , 2001 .

[16]  Antonino S. Aricò,et al.  Investigation of direct methanol fuel cells based on unsupported Pt-Ru anode catalysts with different chemical properties , 2000 .

[17]  Andreas Schmitz,et al.  Influence of diffusion layer properties on low temperature DMFC , 2004 .

[18]  A. K. Shukla,et al.  A liquid-feed solid polymer electrolyte direct methanol fuel cell operating at near-ambient conditions , 1998 .

[19]  J. Leger,et al.  Mechanistic aspects of methanol oxidation on platinum-based electrocatalysts , 2001 .

[20]  A. K. Shukla,et al.  The design and construction of high-performance direct methanol fuel cells. 1. Liquid-feed systems , 1997 .

[21]  I-Ming Hsing,et al.  Nafion membrane coated with sulfonated poly(vinyl alcohol): Nafion film for direct methanol fuel cells , 2002 .

[22]  Jong-Ho Choi,et al.  Methanol Oxidation on Pt/Ru, Pt/Ni, and Pt/Ru/Ni Anode Electrocatalysts at Different Temperatures for DMFCs , 2003 .

[23]  Paul A. Christensen,et al.  The electrochemical oxidation of methanol on platinum and platinum + ruthenium particulate electrodes studied by in-situ FTIR spectroscopy and electrochemical mass spectrometry , 1996 .

[24]  Antonino S. Aricò,et al.  Surface properties of inorganic fillers for application in composite membranes-direct methanol fuel cells , 2004 .

[25]  P. Kohl,et al.  Fabrication of air-channel structures for microfluidic, microelectromechanical, and microelectronic applications , 2001 .

[26]  Harry E. Hoster,et al.  Current-Time Behavior of Smooth and Porous PtRu Surfaces for Methanol Oxidation , 2001 .