Establishment of Measurement Method of Leak Current Generation Distribution in PEFC and Application to the Load Fluctuation Test under Low Humidification

Abstract

A study was conducted to establish a method for measuring the position and amount of leak current increase during operation of the cell. This measurement method was applied to the load fluctuation test under low humidification and leak current increase was observed on the down stream of the cell. Tested cell was disassembled and cross sections were observed under SEM. SEM images revealed the formation of the Pt band near the cathode catalyst of the down stream of the cell. This may be the cause of the degradation of the membrane at the downstream.