Agar chemical hydrogel electrode binder for fuel-electrolyte-fed fuel cells

L. An, T.S. Zhao and L. Zeng

Applied Energy, 2013, vol. 109, issue C, 67-71

Abstract: This work reports on the synthesis and application of a novel, cost-effective and environmentally friendly agar chemical hydrogel (ACH) electrode binder in fuel-electrolyte-fed fuel cells. The ACH is synthesized by a chemical cross-linking reaction between agar and glutaraldehyde with acetic acid as a catalyst. The fuel cell performance characterization demonstrates that the use of the ACH-based electrode in a fuel-electrolyte-fed fuel cell enables an improvement in cell performance as opposed to the use of conventional Nafion ionomer-based electrodes. The improved performance can be mainly attributed to the enhanced mass/charge transport rendered by the hydrophilic nature and water retention characteristic of agar. This work suggests that the cost-effective ACH binder can replace conventional Nafion ionomers for fuel-electrolyte-fed fuel cells.

Keywords: Fuel cell; Fuel-electrolyte-fed fuel cell; Alkaline–acid direct ethanol fuel cell; Agar chemical hydrogel; Electrode binder (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:appene:v:109:y:2013:i:c:p:67-71

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DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.03.077

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