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In this manuscript, the graphite/resin composite plates were prepared via a facile ball milling strategy. The needle coke (NC) as a conductive additive was studied on effects of treated by ball milling on the electrical conductivity, mechanical property of the composite plates. All the characterizations showed that after ball milling, the NC particles have smaller particle size, and more uniform particle size distribution, which enhanced the interfacial adhesion between particles and resin. Due to the difference in shape and size between the auxiliary conductive filler and flake graphite, the addition of NC particles can easily fill the gap between flake‐like graphite and phenolic resin. The uniform distribution of these fillers improves the cross‐linking density, and the conductive path was added between the flake‐like graphite and the resin, which improved the electric conductivity of composit plate from 26.32 S cm−1 to 149.23 S cm−1. Such a prominent performance was attributed to the synergistic effects between the uniformly incorporated NC and the graphite/resin composite adhesive system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highly active Pt‐based intermetallic nanoparticles (i‐NPs) loaded on stable supports have garnered considerable interest as promising oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts for proton‐exchange‐membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Herein, thermostable tellurium (Te) is vapor‐deposited onto commercial conductive carbon to anchor high‐temperature‐synthesized Pt3Co i‐NPs. Advanced characterization and density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrate that the binding energy of Pt 4f and Co 2p shift positively by 0.12 and 0.95 eV after the introduction of Te in carbon support, promoting the formation of Pt─Te bonds, which enhances the metal–support interactions (MSIs) in Pt3Co/Te‐C (with a more negative binding energy of −10.28 eV). The average size of well‐dispersed Pt3Co i‐NPs (≈3.9 nm) on Te─C is considerably smaller than that of Pt3Co i‐NPs (≈9.1 nm) on commercial carbon. The specific activity of Pt3Co/Te‐C decreases by only 1.5% after 100,000 ultra‐long voltage‐accelerated cycles, while the morphology remains almost unchanged. The membrane electrode assembly using Pt3Co/Te‐C as a cathode demonstrates impressive activity (power density of 2.32 W cm−2@4 A cm−2 and mass activity of 0.50 A mgPt−1@0.9 V) and robust durability (mass activity@0.9 V loss of 26% after 30,000 cycles with intact L12 ordered structure) in H2–O2 operation, significantly exceeding the DOE 2025 requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ether-free proton exchange membranes (PEMs) based on aromatic polymers are considered as potential alternatives to perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) PEMs due to their low cost, less reactant crossing, exceptional chemical stability and outstanding thermal stability. Herein, a series of high-performance sulfonated poly(biphenyl alkylene) (BPSA-PT- x) membranes with full carbon chain backbones were synthesized to investigate the effect of different ratios of hydrophobic components on membrane properties. Among the prepared membranes, the BPSA-PT-10 % PEM with the highest proton conductivity (311 mS cm-1 at 80 °C water) possessed excellent dimensional stability (in-plane swelling rate ≤19.7 %, through-plane swelling rate ≤24.9 %), mechanical properties (elongation at break: 89.8 % in wet state), thermal stability (glass transition temperature >450 °C) and low H 2 crossover (1.80 mA cm-2). Further, the assembled H 2 /O 2 fuel cell based on BPSA-PT-10 % PEM exhibited competitive performance with a peak power density of 2.62 W cm-2. The developed poly(biphenyl alkylene)-based PEMs should have potential applications in hydrogen energy field. [Display omitted] • A series of sulfonated poly(biphenyl alkylene) PEMs are synthesized. • The hydrophobic components have remarkably affected the performance of PEMs. • The proton conductivity is high to of 311 mS cm-1 in water at 80 °C. • The PEMs have better dimensional stability, and lower H 2 crossover than Nafion 212. • The H 2 /O 2 fuel cell exhibits a peak power density of high to 2.62 W cm-2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]