Search

Abstract: The performance stability of the direct borohydride fuel cell (DBFC) working under passive conditions was studied in this work. The stability within hours was found to be greatly affected by mass transport properties of different cell components. It was significantly improved by modifying electrode structures, increasing hydrophobicity of the cathode and using pretreated membranes. On the other hand, the stability of the DBFC cell for more than 100h was determined by the durabilities of these cell components. The nickel anode and silver cathode were found to degrade after prolonged operations and thus the durabilities of these non-noble metal catalysts need to be improved. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Direct borohydride fuel cell (DBFC) as a liquid type fuel cell is promising for portable applications. In this study, we report our recent progress in the micro-fuel cell development. A power density of 80mWcm−2 was achieved in passive mode at ambient conditions when using the anode containing nickel, carbon-supported Pd catalyst and Nafion ionomer. Current efficiency was also found to be greatly increased due to the use of Nafion rather than polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). Based on improvements on single cell performance, planar multi-cell power modules were assembled to study the feasibility of making high-performance and practical DBFC power units. A power of 2.5W was achieved in a fully passive eight-cell module after significantly simplifying cell structure. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]