Direct methanol alkaline fuel cells using novel poly(vinylalcohol)-based block copolymer

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26420724
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Structural/Functional materials
• Research Institution: Yamaguchi University
• Principal Investigator: ENDO Nobutaka 山口大学, 創成科学研究科, 講師 (40314819)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 燃料電池 / 高分子電解質膜 / ポリビニルアルコール / ブロックポリマー / メタノールバリア性

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Direct methanol alkaline fuel cells (DMAFC) can pave the way for the use of non-noble catalysts, such as silver and nickel. The high methanol crossover rate have resulted in fuel loss and reduced cell voltage. In this work, we attempted to prepare the polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM), the ionomer and the binder from the block copolymer consisting of poly(vinylalcohol) (PVA) and anion exchange chains, due to the excellent methanol barrier properties of PVA matrix.
A test cell for DMFCs constructed using the PVA-based PEMs delivered 69.0 mW/cm2 of maximum power density (Pmax) at 10wt% methanol solution. Pmax and methanol flux during DMFC operations are also higher performances than that of other commercially available membranes in high concentration methanol fuel. Electrodes using PVA-based ionomer also indicate high methanol barrier properties than that using Nafion ionomer.

Free Research Field

高分子化学、電気化学