Durable fuel cell with platinum cobalt alloy cathode catalyst and selectively conducting anode

摘要

The degradation associated with repeated startup and shutdown of solid polymer electrolyte fuel cells comprising PtCo alloy cathode catalysts can be particularly poor. However, a marked and unexpected improvement in durability is observed as a result of incorporating a selectively conducting component in electrical series with the anode components in the fuel cell.

主权项

1. A solid polymer electrolyte hydrogen/air fuel cell comprising a solid polymer electrolyte, a cathode side comprising a cathode, and an anode side comprising an anode and a selectively conducting metal oxide layer connected in series electrically wherein:
the selectively conducting metal oxide layer is characterized by a low electrical resistance in the presence of hydrogen or fuel and a high electrical resistance in the presence of air; the electrical resistance of the selectively conducting metal oxide layer in the presence of hydrogen is more than 100 times lower than the electrical resistance in the presence of air; the cathode comprises a carbon supported PtCo alloy catalyst comprising 25-30% Pt and 2-6% Co by weight; the selectively conducting metal oxide is tin oxide (SnO, SnO2) in the form of particles with platinum deposited on the tin oxide particles.