Wednesday, April 2, 2008 - 3:10 PM
Catalysts and Applications for Anion-Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers
In this presentation, we will re-examine the noble metal requirements of state-of-the-art Direct Methanol Fuel Cells (DMFCs), demonstrating that platinum-metals requirements (predominantly platinum and ruthenium) even for perfectly engineered DMFCs will not meet commercial cost targets for many of the envisaged portable applications. This has led to recent attempts by the scientific community to develop anion-exchange membrane based fuel cell (AMFC) and electrolyzer (AME) technology, where non-noble metal based catalysts are possible alternatives.
Such AMFC technology has been pursued by Acta S.p.A. over the past two years, developing Pt-free anode and cathode catalysts for use in AMFCs operated with ethanol, ethylene glycol, and glycerol as fuel. As will be shown, the cathode performance using Acta’s non-noble metal catalyst is essentially identical to that of a carbon-supported Pt catalyst. Similarly, anode catalysts have been developed which are either free of noble metal or contain very small amounts of noble metals. While further improvement of the catalysts is necessary, it will be shown that it is also essential to improve the conductivity of currently available anion-exchange membranes and to develop highly conductive soluble ionomers for electrode preparation.
With optimized membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs), AMFCs will be shown to offer possible pathways towards obtaining platinum-metals free H2/air fuel cells and water electrolyzers. Another promising application is the use of anion-exchange membrane based technology for H2 generation via ammonia electrolysis. In this talk, we will discuss the current status of the use of anion-exchange membrane fuel cells and electrolyzers as well as the future research needs required for commercialization.
Such AMFC technology has been pursued by Acta S.p.A. over the past two years, developing Pt-free anode and cathode catalysts for use in AMFCs operated with ethanol, ethylene glycol, and glycerol as fuel. As will be shown, the cathode performance using Acta’s non-noble metal catalyst is essentially identical to that of a carbon-supported Pt catalyst. Similarly, anode catalysts have been developed which are either free of noble metal or contain very small amounts of noble metals. While further improvement of the catalysts is necessary, it will be shown that it is also essential to improve the conductivity of currently available anion-exchange membranes and to develop highly conductive soluble ionomers for electrode preparation.
With optimized membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs), AMFCs will be shown to offer possible pathways towards obtaining platinum-metals free H2/air fuel cells and water electrolyzers. Another promising application is the use of anion-exchange membrane based technology for H2 generation via ammonia electrolysis. In this talk, we will discuss the current status of the use of anion-exchange membrane fuel cells and electrolyzers as well as the future research needs required for commercialization.
Presentation