摘要 |
Corrosion resistant, manganese-stabilized austenitic stainless steels with a low nickel content are used in bipolar plates, methods for fabricating the bipolar plates, and polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells comprising the bipolar plates. The bipolar plates are formed from high-manganese austenitic stainless steels comprising, in weight percents, 4.0 to 35 manganese, 0.5 to 1.5 nickel, 17 to 20 chromium, 0.2 to 0.5 nitrogen, up to 0.075 carbon, 0.5 to 1.0 silicon, up to 0.1 aluminum, 0 to 0.005 sulfur, and balance iron and incidental impurities. The steels exhibit suitable corrosion resistance, electrical contact resistance, and mechanical properties for high-corrosion applications such as use in bipolar plate materials for PEM fuel cells. The bipolar plates may comprise a solid plate of the steel, optionally coated with a highly electrically conductive material. Alternatively, the bipolar plates may comprise an economical substrate coated with the steel, optionally further coated with a highly electrically conductive material.
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