Lenskyi M.S.

Senior Lecturer, MIREA – Russian Technological University

Energy-efficient nanocomposite membrane-electrode blocks for chemical current sources

Abstract
Electrode materials based on platinum metal nanoparticles are widely used to create alternative energy sources with high specific characteristics. Industrial carbon-containing carriers and perfluorinated proton exchange membranes of the Nafion type are used as matrices for the fuel cell electrodes formation. In this work, new effective polymer-carbon catalysts modified with platinum nanoparticles have been synthesized. Physicochemical and functional characteristics of nanocomposites have been studied by electron microscopy, X-ray phase analysis, small-angle X-ray scattering and cyclic voltammetry. Increased catalytic activity and stability of the formed electrodes in hydrogen-oxygen fuel cells had been found. The test results of hydrogen-air fuel cells in model operating conditions had been obtained. The current density maximum parameters of the membrane-electrode assemblies had been found for nanocomposites formed on multi-walled carbon nanotubes with a solubilization coefficient of ω equal to 1.5 and a platinum content of 0.35 mg/cm2. The creation of new membrane-electrode assemblies helps to reduce the cost of chemical current sources, as well as increase their energy efficiency.
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DEVELOPMENT OF ELECTRODE MATERIALS BASED ON PLATINUM- RUTHENIUM NANOPARTICLES FOR METHANOL FUEL CELLS

Abstract
The creation of effective materials for the functioning of new chemical power sources is currently an urgent task. Fuel cells can use environmentally friendly and energy resources, such as hydrogen and carbon biofuels (methanol and ethanol), which have a wide range of potential applications from portable devices to power plants. The researcher’s attention is attracted by the development of methanol fuel cells, due to their compact design, liquid fuel, low operating temperature and high specific power. However, commercialization of such energy sources is still a difficult task due to the high platinum content on the electrodes, the high cost of precious metals, low durability and delayed kinetics of both anode and cathode reactions. Increasing the activity and reducing the Pt load are two main tasks in the development of methanol fuel cell technology. In the work, bimetallic Pt-Ru nanoparticles were synthesized by chemical reduction in reversed microemulsions to evaluate the parameters of methanol fuel cells. A porous nickel was used as a carrier matrix, which was formed by template synthesis in a dimensional mask of metallic aluminum. As a result of experimental studies of methanol membrane-electrode assemblies of fuel cells based on porous nickel with Pt and Pt-Ru nanoparticles, it was concluded that the maximum voltage and current density are achieved when using electrodes based on platinum-ruthenium nanoparticles with a particle size of no more than 3 nm, a catalyst content of 0.2 mg/cm2 and a process temperature of 60oC.
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