Work

Modeling Chemical Degradation of a Polymer Electrolyte Membrane and its Impact on Fuel Cell Performance

Year: 2010

Type: conference-paper

Abstract: We present here an elementary kinetic model of the electrochemical phenomena occurring in a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEFC). Chemical degradation of the Nafion® membrane is described through a combination of OH radical formation via Fenton's reaction and a radical mechanism of side chain decomposition. At the electrodes, the model is coupled to a description of the hydrogen oxidation reaction, the oxygen reduction reaction, and the hydrogen peroxide formation reaction at the anodic side. We establish a first feedback between the evolution of structural properties of the membrane and its transport parameters (i.e., proton conductivity) for a fully humidified fuel cell. We assess the influence of the chemical membrane degradation on the cell performance and on macroscopic properties of the membrane (i.e., sulfonate site concentration).

Source: ECS Transactions

DOI: 10.1149/1.3414024

Authors: Romain Coulon, Wolfgang Bessler, Alejandro A. Franco

Institutions: Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V. (DLR)

Language: English

Topic: Fuel Cells and Related Materials

Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Affordable and clean energy

Open Access status: bronze

Funder: European Commission