Influence of Ethanol Decomposition on Dispersion of PEFC Catalyst Ink
Authors: Sasabe Takashi , Ogura Toshihiko , Okada Koki , Oka Haruto , Sakai Katsunori , Hirai Shuichiro 
Published: February 2024

To achieve high power density operation of polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs), it is required to realize high-performance catalyst layer with low oxygen transport resistance, high proton and electron conductivities, and high electrochemical surface area (ECSA) with low Platinum loading. Because dispersion structure of catalyst ink strongly affects porous structure of the catalyst layer, it is crucial for realization of high-performance catalyst layer to understand the dispersion mechanism of the catalyst ink. Our group has reported that decomposition of ethanol, as a solvent, by platinum catalyst significantly affects aggregation of the catalyst ink. [1, 2] But, the mechanism of the catalyst ink aggregation was not fully understood. In this study, effect of ethanol decomposition on the aggregation of the catalyst ink was investigated.
The catalyst ink was fabricated by mixing platinum-supported carbon (TEC10V30E, Tanaka Kikinzoku), ionomer (DE1021, Sigma-Aldrich), and water/ethanol solvent (water/ethanol: 60/40 wt%). Decomposition product of ethanol within the catalyst ink solvent was analyzed by GC/MS (GCMS-QP2020NX, SHIMADZU), and presence of acetaldehyde (C2H4O) and acetic acid (CH3COOH) was detected. In order to investigate the influence of these products on aggregation of the catalyst ink, acetaldehyde or acetic acid was added to the catalyst ink. The particle size distribution was evaluated by using laser diffraction type particle size distribution meter (LA-960V2, HORIBA) without dilution, and it was confirmed that the acetaldehyde-added catalyst ink showed larger particle size and the acetaldehyde caused the aggregation of the catalyst ink (Figure 1). In addition, dispersion of the catalyst ink was observed by using an optical microscopy, and aggregation of the catalyst ink by adding the acetaldehyde was clearly observed (Figure 2). To understand the aggregation mechanism by adding acetaldehyde, ionomer adsorption fraction on the platinum-supported carbon was measured by using centrifugation method, and the decrease in ionomer adsorption fraction by adding acetaldehyde was confirmed. From these results, it was confirmed that acetaldehyde generated by the decomposition of ethanol in the catalyst ink leads to a decrease in the ionomer adsorption fraction. It is reported that the ionomer promotes the dispersion of platinum-supported carbon due to electrostatic repulsion forces, and it is suggested that the decrease in ionomer adsorption fraction results in the aggregation of the catalyst ink. Therefore, to realize high-performance catalyst layer, influence of acetaldehyde should be minimized and further research is requested to understand it.

Acknowledgement

This presentation is based on results obtained from a project commissioned by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO).

References

[1] Takashi Sasabe et al., ECS Trans. 104, 191 (2021).
[2] Takashi Sasabe et al., ECS Meeting Abstracts 242, 1433-1433 (2022).

Figure 1