水素燃料電池電極作製用触媒インク調合における溶媒と分散性の効果

抄録

This study discloses a technique to fabricate a highly reproducible and high performance membrane electrode assembly (MEA) of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC). In this study, we optimized (1) the concentration of catalyst ink, (2) the mixing ratio of water and ethanol as solvents, (3) the dispersion method of catalyst ink, and (4) the aging effect at low temperature (5 °C) in order to fabricate MEAs with high reproducibility using the doctor blade and transfer method. As a result, it was confirmed that the concentration of catalyst ink affects the film quality, and the solvent ratio affects the film thickness. The dispersion of the catalyst ink was improved by the combination of a mechanical mixer and an ultrasonic horn homogenizer as confirmed by dynamic light scattering. The power generation efficiency of the hydrogen fuel cell using the catalyst ink in the MEA was improved. The combination of these techniques enables the fabrication of MEAs with a high quality and reproducibility.