The Effect of NaCl in the Cathode Air Stream on PEMFC Performance

✍ Scribed by M. S. Mikkola; T. Rockward; F. A. Uribe; B. S. Pivovar

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2007
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 455 KB
• Volume: 7
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1615-6846
• DOI: 10.1002/fuce.200600206

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

In this contribution, the effects of sodium chloride in the cathode side air stream of a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell were studied, since it is present in the atmosphere in many fuel cell operating environments, especially at coastal regions and on roads where NaCl is used as a deicer. The effect on PEMFC performance was investigated by injecting NaCl solution into the cathode side air stream of an operating fuel cell. The most significant effect of NaCl under test conditions is the replacement of H^+^ by Na^+^ in the ionomer, lowering performance by reducing proton conductivity. In addition, NaCl was found to absorb into the graphite components, making them a potential long‐term NaCl source after the initial exposure. In contrast to expectations, chloride ions did not appear to effect performance of the cell and the overall magnitude of the effects due to NaCl introduction were smaller than expected.