Reconstruction and optimization of catalyst layer of high temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Catalyst layer determines the performance and cost of high temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell. However, a fundamental understanding and optimization of its microstructure is hindered by the characterization limitation. In this study, the micro model and macro model are integrated to examine the effects of ionomer/carbon (I/C) ratio, Pt/C ratio and Pt loading on the microstructure and cell performance. As many Pt particles are partly coved by the ionomer, assuming all catalyst are covered by ionomer is inap-propriate. Both Pt/C ratio and I/C ratio can significantly affect the compositions and microstructure of CL. The increase of Pt loading increases the cell performance, but the increment is small at a high platinum loading. However, the performance cost increases linearly with the increasing platinum loading. Thus, both cell performance and perfor-mance cost must be taken into consideration when designing CL of high temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell.(c) 2022 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.