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Experimental Study of Electro-Catalyst Loading on Flexible Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell Performance

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Abstract

In recent years, flexible electronics has emerged as a promising field that has attracted significant attention as a potential industry of the future. To realize full potential of flexible electronics, flexible power sources are essential. Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are well-suited for this purpose, but the high cost of the catalyst, specifically platinum (Pt), is a major hurdle. This study sought to determine the optimal Pt loading for flexible PEMFCs, to reduce waste of catalyst and find a cost-effective solution. The optimal catalyst loading for flexible fuel cells varies depending on the operating environment and conditions. In environments requiring the generation of high power regardless of operating voltage, the optimal Pt loading is 0.1 mgPt cm−2. In contrast, in environments where higher voltage is required with a minimum stacking, the optimal Pt loading is between 0.3 and 0.4 mgPt cm−2. These results demonstrate optimal catalyst loading for flexible fuel cells in consideration of the operating environment and conditions. These results contribute valuable insight into the optimal catalyst loading for various applications, reducing the cost of flexible fuel cells, and paving the way for wider adoption of flexible electronics.

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The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) granted by the Ministry of Science and ICT (RS-2023-00209146).

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  1. School of Mechanical Engineering, Soongsil University, 369 Sangdo-ro, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, 06978, Republic of Korea

    Gyutae Park, Hongnyoung Yoo, Jiwon Baek, Obeen Kwon, Yoonho So, Junghyun Park, Hojae Jang, Hyoun-Myoung Oh, Seonghyeon Yang, Gyuhyeon Kim, Jaeyeon Kim & Taehyun Park

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Park, G., Yoo, H., Baek, J. et al. Experimental Study of Electro-Catalyst Loading on Flexible Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell Performance. Int. J. of Precis. Eng. and Manuf.-Green Tech. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-024-00603-1

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