Disclosure of Invention
The invention aims to provide a sealing method of a fuel cell membrane electrode, which is characterized in that a proper protective film is selected to seal an electrolyte membrane in the membrane electrode so as to isolate the electrolyte membrane from an external medium, thereby improving the reliability and prolonging the service life of the membrane electrode.
In order to achieve the purpose, the invention adopts the following technical scheme:
a membrane electrode protective film sealing structure of fuel cell, the membrane electrode includes anode gas diffusion electrode, cathode gas diffusion electrode, and electrolyte membrane between the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode, the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode are oppositely arranged in the middle of two sides of the electrolyte membrane, and the peripheral edges of the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode are spaced from the peripheral edge of the electrolyte membrane, namely a distance is left, so that the peripheral edge of the electrolyte membrane forms a covering area without anode gas diffusion electrode and cathode gas diffusion electrode,
two sides of the electrolyte membrane are respectively provided with an annular protective film with a through hole in the middle, the annular protective film is attached to the coverage area of the peripheral edge of the electrolyte membrane without an anode gas diffusion electrode and a cathode gas diffusion electrode, the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode are respectively positioned in the middle through holes of the two annular protective films, the shape and the size of the through holes are the same as those of the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode, the inner side edges of the two annular protective films are respectively attached to the peripheral edges of the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode, and the peripheral edges of the outer ends of the two annular protective films, which are far away from the electrolyte membrane, are hermetically connected.
The opposite surfaces of the closed connecting ends of the two annular protective films are respectively provided with a coating, and the two coating areas are relatively overlapped and then fused into a whole, so that the closed connection of the outer ends of the two annular protective films far away from the electrolyte membrane is realized.
The other kind of fuel cell membrane electrode protecting film sealing structure has two integrated protecting films, which have central through hole in the shape and size the same as that of the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode, and one ring notch in the inner wall of the side edge of the ring film, and the electrolyte film with covering area without anode gas diffusion electrode and cathode gas diffusion electrode inside the ring notch and inner side edge adhered to the peripheral edges of the anode gas diffusion electrode and the cathode gas diffusion electrode.
The protective film is made of a material resistant to phosphoric acid corrosion and high temperature.
The phosphoric acid corrosion resistant material is any one of Polysulfone (PSU), polyether ether ketone (PEEK), Polyimide (PI), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), soluble Polytetrafluoroethylene (PFA) and perfluoroethylene propylene copolymer (FEP).
The thickness of the protective film is 5% -40% of the thickness of the gas diffusion electrode.
The protective film comprises a laminated support layer and a coating layer.
The heat-resistant film materials such as the supporting layer Polysulfone (PSU), the polyether ether ketone (PEEK), the Polyimide (PI), the polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) and the like have the heat-resistant temperature higher than 400 ℃ and have the characteristics of good acid resistance, alkali resistance, insulation and the like. The coating is a high-temperature melting compound such as Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), perfluoroethylene propylene copolymer (FEP), soluble Polytetrafluoroethylene (PFA) and the like, the compound is melted at 300-350 ℃, and after cooling, the compound has good adhesion and has the characteristics of acid resistance, alkali resistance, insulation and the like.
The membrane electrode structure is applied to a high-temperature phosphoric acid fuel cell.
The structure of the invention ensures that the proton exchange membrane of the membrane electrode of the fuel cell is in a sealed state, thereby not only ensuring that the electrolyte in the proton exchange membrane flows out along the junction of the protective membrane, but also preventing the media such as cooling liquid from passing through the protective membrane and permeating into the proton exchange membrane, solving the problems that the electrolyte runs out and the cooling liquid permeates in the membrane electrode of the fuel cell during the application process, and greatly improving the operability of the membrane electrode.
Detailed Description
Example 1
A fuel cell sealing method comprising the steps of:
1) in the membrane electrode preparation, firstly, the external dimension length and width a x b of the square gas diffusion electrode (anode gas diffusion electrode, cathode gas diffusion electrode) and the external dimension length and width c x d of the electrolyte membrane are designed according to requirements. In this case, the length and width dimensions of the electrolyte membrane are controlled to be 2 to 3mm larger than those of the gas diffusion electrode. And cutting and forming the blank through a cutting die.
2) The anode gas diffusion electrode, the cathode gas diffusion electrode and the electrolyte membrane are pressed together at a certain temperature and pressure through a specific tool, and are integrated into a whole through the liquid tension on the membrane surface, which is called a gas diffusion electrode-electrolyte membrane assembly, and is shown in fig. 1.
3) Selecting a fuel cell protective film, wherein the thickness is generally 20-200 μm (the preferred thickness is 20-120 μm), and for the preferred thickness, the protective film is a square support film with a coating on one side, the thickness of the support film is generally 10-190 μm (the preferred thickness is 10-100 μm), and the thickness of the coating is generally 5-50 μm (the preferred thickness is 5-20 μm);
4) confirming the coating material of the protective film to obtain the melting temperature T and the specific heat capacity C of the coating material;
5) confirming a base material to obtain the heat transfer coefficient lambda and the density rho of the base material;
6) the overall dimension of the protective film is designed, the two protective film coating sides are stacked in layers for fusion, the outer end sides are hermetically connected after fusion, so that the protective film is in a shape of a Chinese character 'hui', namely a square ring, the shape and the dimension of the inner frame of the protective film are the outer edge dimension of the gas diffusion electrode, and the shape and the dimension of the outer frame of the protective film are the outer edge dimension of the stack bipolar plate. As shown in fig. 2. And cutting and forming the blank through a cutting die.
7) And through a designated tool clamp, the upper side and the lower side of an electrolyte membrane of the gas diffusion electrode-electrolyte membrane assembly are covered with protective films, so that the inner protective film frame is just connected with the outer gas diffusion electrode frame. See fig. 3.
8) And designing the sealing size. And sealing the position, which is 1-2mm away from the electrolyte membrane along the outer edge of the electrolyte membrane under the condition that the sealing of the stack is not influenced, wherein the sealing condition is divided into three parameters of pressure, temperature and time. The sealing pressure of the film is generally controlled between 1 and 5bar, the sealing temperature is slightly higher than the melting temperature T of the coating material of the protective film, and the time is between 10 and 20S.
After the high-temperature phosphoric acid fuel cell electrode prepared by the method is assembled into a single cell, a service life test is carried out for 500 hours, and the cell is inspected to find no acid leakage phenomenon generated by the traditional electrode structure.
Example 2
A fuel cell sealing method comprising the steps of:
1) in the membrane electrode preparation, firstly, the external dimension length and width a x b of the square gas diffusion electrode (anode gas diffusion electrode, cathode gas diffusion electrode) and the external dimension length and width c x d of the electrolyte membrane are designed according to requirements. In this case, the length and width dimensions of the electrolyte membrane are controlled to be 2 to 3mm larger than those of the gas diffusion electrode. And cutting and forming the blank through a cutting die.
2) The fuel cell protective film is selected, generally, the thickness delta is 40-400 μm (the preferred thickness is 40-240 μm), and for the protective film with the preferred thickness, the protective film is cut into a shape like a Chinese character 'hui', namely a square ring, by a tool clamp, the shape and the size of the inner frame of the protective film are the outer edge size of the gas diffusion electrode, and the shape and the size of the outer frame of the protective film are the outer edge size of the stack bipolar plate. Meanwhile, an annular groove with the thickness of an electrolyte membrane and the depth of 3-8mm is processed on the inner edge surface.
3) And placing the peripheral edge of the electrolyte membrane into the annular groove of the protective membrane through a tool clamp so as to flatten the electrolyte membrane.
4) The anode gas diffusion electrode, the cathode gas diffusion electrode and the electrolyte membrane are pressed together at a certain temperature and pressure through a specific tool, and are integrated into a whole through the liquid tension on the membrane surface to form a membrane electrode assembly with a protective membrane, as shown in fig. 3.
After the high-temperature phosphoric acid fuel cell electrode prepared by the method is assembled into a single cell, a service life test is carried out for 500 hours, and the cell is inspected to find no acid leakage phenomenon generated by the traditional electrode structure.
Comparative example 1
A fuel cell sealing method comprising the steps of:
1) in the membrane electrode preparation, firstly, the external dimension length and width a x b of the square gas diffusion electrode (anode gas diffusion electrode, cathode gas diffusion electrode) and the external dimension length and width c x d of the electrolyte membrane are designed according to requirements. In this case, the length and width dimensions of the electrolyte membrane are controlled to be 2 to 3mm larger than those of the gas diffusion electrode. And cutting and forming the blank through a cutting die.
2) The anode gas diffusion electrode, the cathode gas diffusion electrode and the electrolyte membrane are pressed together at a certain temperature and pressure through a specific tool, and are integrated into a whole through the liquid tension on the membrane surface, which is called a gas diffusion electrode-electrolyte membrane assembly, and is shown in fig. 1.
3) The fuel cell polyester frame has the same external dimension as the electrolyte membrane, and the inside of the fuel cell polyester frame is die-cut by a cutting die to form a through hole with the same external dimension as the gas diffusion electrode;
4) and placing the polyester frame of the fuel cell on the upper side and the lower side of an electrolyte membrane of the gas diffusion electrode-electrolyte membrane assembly through a designated tool fixture, and pressing to obtain the traditional membrane electrode.
After the traditional high-temperature phosphoric acid fuel cell electrode prepared by the method is assembled into a single cell, a service life test is carried out, the acid climbing phenomenon occurs in 100 hours, and the performance of the cell is obviously reduced.