Investigation of the performance of a direct borohydride fuel cell with low Pt/C catalyst loading under different operating conditions

Fuel cells are promising alternative energy converters in terms of preventing pollution, efficiency, and noise. Direct borohydride fuel cells (DBFCs) which are defined as a sub-class of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) and direct liquid fuel cells (DLFC) have increased attention recently since they offer a solution for hydrogen storage problem. However, the commercialization of DBFC is hindered by the need of high platinum loadings. Therefore, reducing the platinum content is crucial to develop cost-effective DBFC without compromising performance. This research focuses on the effects of operational parameters on the DBFC performance with low level Pt/C catalyst loading (anode: 0.32 mg/cm(2), cathode: 0.36 mg/cm(2)). The gas diffusion electrode was prepared by spray-coating technique. The peak power density of 19.95 mW/cm(2) was obtained at 80 degrees C when 1 mL/ min was used as a flow rate of fuel. (c) 2020 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.