Fuel cell performance and durability investigation of bimetallic radical scavengers in Aquivion perfluorosulfonic acid membranes

In this paper, we present a straightforward synthesis of bimetallic radical scavengers supported onto silica and an evaluation of their effectiveness to increasing the lifetime of Aquivion (R) PFSA membranes. Such scavengers comprise cerium (Ce) and chromium (Cr) and were incorporated in e-PTFE reinforced thin membranes through suspension in water based Aquivion (R) PFSA dispersion. The bimetallic samples were physico-chemically characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analyses and compared to the monometallic Ce and Cr scavengers prepared in the same way. The membranes containing the mono-or bi-metallic scavengers were electrochemically investigated in terms of polarization behavior, cell resistance and durability. The MEA based on monometallic Ce-based scavenger showed the largest durability (7-time more than a reference MEA). The bimetallic scavenger appears also very promising. However, a proper optimization of the composition is required for its application in highly durable composite Aquivion (R) membrane. (C) 2017 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.