Patent ID: 8597856

Claim:
A direct methanol fuel cell comprising: a cathode catalyst layer; an electrolyte membrane formed on a surface of the cathode catalyst layer; an anode catalyst layer formed on a surface of the electrolyte membrane opposite to the surface of the electrolyte membrane having the cathode catalyst layer thereon; a first fuel control layer that is formed on a surface of the anode catalyst layer opposite to the surface of the anode catalyst layer having the electrolyte membrane formed thereon and is water-repellent and conductive and has a plurality of pores; a second fuel control layer that is formed on a surface of the first fuel control layer comprising a porous substrate comprising a fiber, a water-repellent material and a conductive material, wherein the second fuel control layer has a lower cumulative intrusion than the first fuel control layer and the third fuel control layer; a third fuel control layer that is formed on a surface of the second fuel control layer opposite to the surface of the second fuel control layer having the first fuel control layer formed thereon and is water-repellent and conductive and has a plurality of smaller pores than those of the first fuel control layer and those of the second fuel control layer; and an anode GDL layer that is formed on a surface of the third fuel control layer opposite to the surface of the third fuel control layer having the second fuel control layer formed thereon and is water-repellent and conductive, wherein the membrane and the layers above are arranged in the above order the plurality of pores in the third fuel control layer have a diameter from 0.01 to 0.1 μm, the plurality of pores in the first fuel control layer have a diameter from 0.1 to 1 μm, and the plurality of pores in the second fuel control layer have a diameter from 1 to 10 μm.