Preparation and Application Research of Super Absorbent Polymer Membrane for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
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摘要: 作为质子交换膜燃料电池(PEMFC)的一个重要应用场景,开发满足无人机用的低温质子交换膜燃料电池(Low Temperature-PEMFC)正受到越来越多的关注。无人机所采用的PEMFC操作条件比较特殊,作为原料的H2、空气均为无加湿的干气。针对这一特殊操作条件,需开发相应的具有保水能力的质子交换膜。为此,首先合成了一种具有高保水性的高分子树脂(PAAAM),将其加入Nafion溶液中混合均匀,利用溶液浇铸法制膜,探索并优化了PAAAM的加入量;随后,对保水复合膜进行了FTIR、SEM、质子传导率、保水性、溶胀率、拉伸强度、热失重性能等表征,并进行电池输出性能测试;最终结果表明:Nafion系质子交换膜在原料为干空气、干H2的条件下,最适宜的操作温度区间为50~55℃。当PAAAM加入量为1.0wt%时,Nafion基复合膜(NFPAM1)具有更优的电池性能。当电池温度55℃、干燥H2、空气流量分别为0.1 L·min−1和0.55 L·min−1时,采用NFPAM1复合膜的PEMFC最高功率密度为691 mW·cm−2。Abstract: As an important application scenario of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), the development of low-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell (LT-PEMFC) for drones is attracting attention. The operating conditions of the PEMFC used by drones are relatively special. The hydrogen and air used as raw materials are dry gas without humidification. To meet this requirement, it is necessary to develop a proton exchange membrane with water retention capacity. We first synthesized a polymer with high water retention (PAAAM), used the solution casting method to form composite membranes, blended it into Nafion solution, and studied the content of PAAAM. Subsequently, we characterized each composite membrane by FT-IR, SEM, proton conductivity, water uptake, swelling ratio and other properties. Then we tested the battery output performance. The final results show that the optimum operating temperature range of Nafion proton exchange membrane is 50-55℃ when the raw material is dry air and dry hydrogen. When the amount of PAAAM added is 1.0wt%, the Nafion-based composite membrane (NFPAM1) has better battery performance. When the battery temperature is 55℃, the dry hydrogen gas, and the dry air flow rate are 0.1 L·min−1 and 0.55 L·min−1, respectively, the highest power density of PEMFC using NFPAM1 composite membrane is 691 mW·cm−2.
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表 1 PAAAM的合成配方
Table 1. Recipes for the synthesis of PAAAM
AA (neutrali-
zation 60%)/gAM/
gCrosslinker/
mgInitiator/
mgContent 60 10 6 60 Notes: AA—Acrylic acid; AM—Acrylamide. 表 2 几种保水复合膜的制膜配方
Table 2. Contents of water-retaining composite membranes.
Nafion D520/
wt%P(AA-co-AM)/
wt%P(AA-co-AM)/
mgNafion-CS 100 0 0 NFPAM1 99.0 1.0 5.1 NFPAM2 97.6 2.4 12.3 NFPAM3 94.0 6.0 31.9 表 3 Nafion-CS、NFPAM1和NFPAM2膜的力学性能
Table 3. Mechanical property of Nafion-CS, NFPAM1 and NFPAM2
Thickness/
μmTensile strength/
MPaElongation/
%Nafion-CS 22±2 5.57 30.7 NFPAM1 21±1 9.52 35.7 NFPAM2 21±1 6.73 25.2 表 4 几种复合膜制备MEA的最高功率密度
Table 4. Highest power density of MEA prepared by composite membranes
Membrane
materialHighest power density/
(mW·cm−2)Nafion-CS 664 NFPAM1 691 NFPAM2 662 NFPAM3 605 -
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