Fuel Cell Chemistry and Operation

This book presents themes such as fuel cell electro-catalysis and membrane development as well as durability of fuel cell components. It presents varying results and views on a fundamentally interesting method, broad-band dielectric spectroscopy, of particular interest because of the high potential for insight arising from the method on the one hand coupled to radically different interpretations of data in the literature. In short, the debate is over matters of interpretation of features in the data. Application of dielectric spectroscopy to the study of polymers has a long history. However, polymeric electrolytes with substantial conductivity present significant problems for traditional measurement techniques using low surface area electrodes. Significant interfacial polarization can arise in such cases, leading to spectral features that are spurious.

Andrew M. Herring is currently an Associate Professor in the Chemical Engineering Department at Mines. His research group is involved in fundamental studies and the development of advanced fuel cell components for PEM fuel cells, photo catalytic production of hydrogen from water, and the use of biomass and hydrocarbon thermo-chemical conversion processes for analysis and to produce fuels and chemicals.

Thomas Zawodzinski is presently the Governor's Chair in Electrical Energy Storage with a joint appointment at UT-Knoxville and ORNL.

Preface
1. Status of Fuel Cells and the Challenges Facing Fuel Cell Technology Today
Kathi Epping Martin, John P. Kopasz, and Kevin W. McMurphy
2. Membranes for PEM Fuel Cells Michael A. Yandrasits and Steven J. Hamrock
3. Synthesis and Characterization of Poly(vinylidene fluoride)-g-Sulfonated Polystyrene Graft Copolymers for Proton Exchange Membrane
Zhicheng Zhang, Elena Chalkova, Mark Fedkin, Chunmei Wang, Serguei N. Lvov, Sridhar Komarneni, and T. C. Chung
4. Rigid Rod Polyelectrolytes with Frozen-In Free Volume: High Conductivity at Low RH
Morton Litt, Sergio Granados-Focil, and Junwon Kang
5. Molecular Weight Effects on Poly(arylene ether sulfone)-Based Random and Multiblock Copolymers Characteristics for Fuel Cells
Anand S. Badami, Hae-Seung Lee, Yanxiang Li, Abhishek Roy, Hang Wang, and James E. McGrath
6. Mesoscopic Simulations of the Hydrated Morphology of the Short-Side-Chain Perfluorosulfonic Acid Ionomer
Dongsheng Wu and Stephen J. Paddison
7. Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy and Conductivity Mechanism of Nafion 117 and Nafion/[ZrO2] Hybrid Inorganic-Organic Membranes
V. Di Noto, E. Negro, and S. Lavina
8. Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopic Studies of Nafion®/Silicate Membranes
Mohammad K. Hassan and Kenneth A. Mauritz
9. Chemical Durability Studies of PFSA and Nonfluorinated PEM Materials
David A. Schiraldi, Chun Zhou, Deepa Savant, and Thomas A. Zawodzinski Jr.
10. Open Circuit Voltage Fuel Cell Durability Testing Using Multiple PEM MEAs
Greg Haugen, Sara Barta, Mike Emery, Steven Hamrock, and Mike Yandrasits
11. Metal Oxides and Heteropoly Acids as Anodic Electrocatalysts in Direct Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
Jack R. Ferrell III and Andrew M. Herring