Dadheech G., Abd Elhamid M., Blunk R.
General Motors Corporation, US
Keywords: bipolar plate, fuel cells, hydrophilic, water management
A stably superhydrophilic coating is required on composite and metal bipolar plates to manage byproduct liquid water and, in turn, to enable good PEM fuel cell performace under low power vehicle operating conditions. Silica-based coatings, particularly those derived from particulate sols and applied using a self-assembly layer-by-layer (LbL) process, can be rendered superhydrophilic by tailoring its nanostructure. These nanoparticle coatings can also meet other bipolar plate requirements such as low electrical contact resistance, high electrochemical stability, good wet adhesion and low cost. However, it’s questionable whether these desired coating properties can be maintained over a 10-year stack life as three modes of hydrophilicity loss–dissolution, adhesion, and contamination–are observed. New nanostructured coating materials and processing developments are needed to mitigate these loss mechanisms, particularly the latter.
Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 3, Nanotechnology 2009: Biofuels, Renewable Energy, Coatings, Fluidics and Compact Modeling
Published: May 3, 2009
Pages: 180 - 183
Industry sector: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
Topic: Coatings, Surfaces & Membranes
ISBN: 978-1-4398-1784-1