TY - JOUR
T1 - A comparison of physical properties and fuel cell performance of Nafion and zirconium phosphate/Nafion composite membranes
AU - Yang, Chris
AU - Srinivasan, S.
AU - Bocarsly, Andrew Bruce
AU - Tulyani, S.
AU - Benziger, Jay Burton
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank Professor Richard Register for his assistance with the SAXS measurements. We also acknowledge financial support from NSF DMR-0213707 through the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center at Princeton.
PY - 2004/7/1
Y1 - 2004/7/1
N2 - The physiochemical properties of Nafion 115 and a composite Nafion 115/zirconium phosphate (∼25 wt.%) membranes are compared. The composite membrane takes up more water than Nafion at the same water activity. However, the proton conductivity of the composite membrane is slightly less than that for Nafion 115. Small angle X-ray scattering shows that the hydrophilic phase domains in the composite membrane are spaced further apart than in Nafion 115, and the composite membrane shows less restructuring with water uptake. Despite the lower proton conductivity of the composite membranes they display better fuel cell performance than Nafion 115 when the fuel cell is operated at reduced humidity conditions. It is suggested that the composite membrane has a greater rigidity that accounts for its improved fuel cell performance.
AB - The physiochemical properties of Nafion 115 and a composite Nafion 115/zirconium phosphate (∼25 wt.%) membranes are compared. The composite membrane takes up more water than Nafion at the same water activity. However, the proton conductivity of the composite membrane is slightly less than that for Nafion 115. Small angle X-ray scattering shows that the hydrophilic phase domains in the composite membrane are spaced further apart than in Nafion 115, and the composite membrane shows less restructuring with water uptake. Despite the lower proton conductivity of the composite membranes they display better fuel cell performance than Nafion 115 when the fuel cell is operated at reduced humidity conditions. It is suggested that the composite membrane has a greater rigidity that accounts for its improved fuel cell performance.
KW - Composite membranes
KW - Fuel cells
KW - Water sorption and diffusion
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U2 - 10.1016/j.memsci.2004.03.009
DO - 10.1016/j.memsci.2004.03.009
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:2442429440
SN - 0376-7388
VL - 237
SP - 145
EP - 161
JO - Journal of Membrane Science
JF - Journal of Membrane Science
IS - 1-2
ER -