Fuel cell contact element including a tio2 layer and a conductive layer

Abstract

A flow field plate or bipolar plate for a fuel cell that includes a metal oxide coating that makes the bipolar plate conductive, hydrophilic and stable in the fuel cell environment. Non-limiting examples of suitable doped coatings Ta doped TiO2, Nb doped TiO2 and F doped SnO2. In an alternate embodiment, the metal oxide is a non-stoichiometric metal oxide that includes oxygen vacancies in the lattice structure that provides the conductivity. Non-limiting examples of suitable non-stoichiometric metal oxides include TiO2-x and TiO2+y.

Description

technical field [0001] The present invention relates generally to fuel cell bipolar plates, and more particularly to 2 ) layer and conductive layer of the fuel cell bipolar plate, the TiO 2 Layers and conductive layers combine to make the bipolar plate conductive, hydrophilic, and stable in the fuel cell environment. Background technique [0002] Hydrogen is a very attractive fuel because it is clean and can be used to efficiently generate electricity in fuel cells. A hydrogen fuel cell is an electrochemical device that includes an anode and a cathode with an electrolyte placed between the two. The anode receives hydrogen and the cathode receives oxygen or air. Hydrogen dissociates at the anode to produce free protons and electrons. Protons pass through the electrolyte to the cathode. The protons react with oxygen and electrons at the cathode to produce water. Electrons from the anode cannot pass through the electrolyte and thus do work through the load before being se...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

Dry inlet gas has a drying effect on the membrane which increases the ionic resistance of the cell and limits the long-term durability of the membrane

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