A new design for fuel cells could make these energy-conversion devices more functional at a wider range of temperatures than any fuel cells on the market today.
The secret is a material called phosphoric acid-doped quaternary ammonium (QA) ion-pair-coordinated poly-phenylene (referred to as PA-doped QAPOH). Instead of relying on weak acid-base interactions to transport protons, as current fuel cells do, this material exhibits strong ionic interactions. The fuel cell with PA-doped QAPOH is more durable and functions between 80°C and 200°C, a broader window than current technology allows.
“Because of that extended temperature range, automobile applications may be interested in using this material system in the future to reduce costs,” says Yu Seung Kim, a research scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL).
The LANL researchers used a proton-exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell, which consists of an anode and a cathode separated by a proton-exchange membrane. Hydrogen fuel is...
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