Investigation of the Effect of Catalyst Layer Composition on the Performance of PEM Fuel Cells

dc.contributor.authorRussell, Jason Bradleyen
dc.contributor.committeechairEllis, Michael W.en
dc.contributor.committeemembervon Spakovsky, Michael R.en
dc.contributor.committeememberNelson, Douglas J.en
dc.contributor.departmentMechanical Engineeringen
dc.date.accessioned2014-03-14T20:43:25Zen
dc.date.adate2003-09-03en
dc.date.available2014-03-14T20:43:25Zen
dc.date.issued2003-07-14en
dc.date.rdate2004-09-03en
dc.date.sdate2003-08-14en
dc.description.abstractThe catalyst layer of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is a porous mixture of polymer, carbon, and platinum. The characteristics of the catalyst layer play a critical role in determining the performance of the PEM fuel cell. In this research, sample membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) are prepared using various combinations of polymer and carbon loadings while the platinum catalyst surface area is held constant. For each MEA, polarization curves are determined at common operating conditions. The polarization curves are compared to assess the effects of the catalyst layer composition. The results show that both Nafion and carbon content significantly affect MEA performance. The physical characteristics of the catalyst layer including porosity, thickness, active platinum surface area, ohmic resistance, and apparent Nafion film thickness are investigated to explain the variation in performance. The results show that for the range of compositions considered in this work, the most important factors are the platinum surface area and the apparent Nafion film thickness.en
dc.description.degreeMaster of Scienceen
dc.identifier.otheretd-08142003-193927en
dc.identifier.sourceurlhttp://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-08142003-193927/en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/34526en
dc.publisherVirginia Techen
dc.relation.haspartJ_B_Russell_thesis.pdfen
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectFuel Cellen
dc.subjectNafionen
dc.subjectElectrodesen
dc.subjectCatalyst Layeren
dc.subjectPEMFCen
dc.subjectPlatinumen
dc.titleInvestigation of the Effect of Catalyst Layer Composition on the Performance of PEM Fuel Cellsen
dc.typeThesisen
thesis.degree.disciplineMechanical Engineeringen
thesis.degree.grantorVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State Universityen
thesis.degree.levelmastersen
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Scienceen

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