Ionomer degradation in catalyst layers of anion exchange membrane fuel cells
Qihao Li, Meixue Hu, Chuangxin Ge, Yao Yang, Li Xiao, Lin Zhuang, Héctor D. Abruña
Abstract
H-NMR), cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). While the membrane degradation was minimal after the AEMFC stability test, the ionomer in the catalyst layers degraded approximately 20% to 30% with the cathode being more severely affected than the anode. The ionomer degradation decreased the catalyst utilization and significantly increased the ionic resistance, leading to significant performance degradation in the AEMFC stability test. These findings emphasize the importance of ionomer stability and the need to consider the electrochemical environments of MEAs when evaluating the stability of APEs.