Method of fabricating fuel cells and membrane electrode assemblies
First Claim
1. A method of fabricating a membrane electrode assembly comprising:
- (a) providing a dimensionally stable membrane having a first surface and a second surface;
(b) depositing a first catalyst layer on said first surface according to a first predetermined pattern; and
(c) depositing a first current collector layer on said first surface according to a second predetermined pattern.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The application relates to a method of fabricating micro fuel cells and membrane electrode assemblies by thin film deposition techniques using a dimensionally stable proton exchange membrane as a substrate. The application also relates to membrane electrode assemblies and fuel cells fabricated in accordance with the method. The method includes the steps of successively depositing catalyst, current collector and flow management layers on the membrane substrate in predetermined patterns. Since the fuel cell is formed layer by layer, the need for assembly and sealing of discrete components is avoided. The method improves the contact resistance between the current collectors and catalyst layers and reduce ohmic losses, thereby avoiding the need for end plates or other compressive elements. This in turn reduces the overall thickness of the manufactured fuel cell. Since the fuel cell layers are optionally flexible, the devices may be fabricated using a continuous roller process or other automated means. The method minimizes production costs and costs of non-essential materials and is particularly suitable for low power battery replacement applications.
113 Citations
68 Claims
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1. A method of fabricating a membrane electrode assembly comprising:
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(a) providing a dimensionally stable membrane having a first surface and a second surface;
(b) depositing a first catalyst layer on said first surface according to a first predetermined pattern; and
(c) depositing a first current collector layer on said first surface according to a second predetermined pattern. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 50, 51, 52, 53)
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23. A method of fabricating a fuel cell comprising:
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(a) providing a dimensionally stable membrane having a first surface and a second surface;
(b) depositing a first catalyst layer on said first surface according to a first predetermined pattern;
(c) depositing a first current collector layer on said first surface according to a second predetermined pattern; and
(d) forming a first flow field layer on said membrane according to a third predetermined pattern, wherein at least a portion of said flow field layer is bonded to said membrane. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 54)
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55. A membrane electrode assembly comprising:
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(a) a dimensionally stable proton exchange membrane having first and second sides;
(b) a catalyst layer applied directly on said membrane; and
(c) a current collecting layer applied directly on said membrane in contact with said catalyst layer. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62)
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63. A fuel cell comprising:
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(a) a dimensionally stable proton exchange membrane having first and second sides;
(b) a catalyst layer applied directly on said membrane;
(c) a current collecting layer applied directly on said membrane in contact with said catalyst layer; and
(d) a flow field layer bonded to said membrane comprising at least one channel for delivering reactants to and removing reactants from said fuel cell. - View Dependent Claims (64, 65, 66, 67, 68)
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Specification