Durability Evaluation Of Pemfc Electrode Using Oxygen As Cathode Gas

In this study, we tried to develop a method of accelerated degradation of the electrode by simply using a electronic loader without using a potentiostat to evaluate the durability of the electrode catalyst. To this end, the durability of the electrode was evaluated by repeating the stepwise voltage change using the self-generated voltage by introducing oxygen without introducing nitrogen into the cathode. For accurate electrode durability evaluation, that is, in order not to deteriorate the polymer membrane, the high voltage was lowered to 0.9 V in stepwise voltage change and the relative humidity was 100% to suppress degradation of the polymer membrane due to radicals. After 30,000 cycles (50 hours) of voltage change, the electrode active area decreased by 41.4%. It was confirmed that the electrode was deteriorated, but the polymer membrane was not deteriorated, that there was no increase in hydrogen permeability, no decrease in membrane thickness, and no increase in HFR(High Frequency Resistance).