Degradation and lifetime evaluation of Fe-N-C based catalyst in PEMFC

The restricted lifetime of Fe-N-C based catalysts is often assumed to be connected to the operating temperature. This study will investigate how the cell performance, electrode structure and composition vary over time, at different cell temperatures. At lower temperature, one may expect an increase in radical's stability, but a decrease in reactivity. Results show that the electrode degenerates over time, and that the electrochemical performance decay is similar for 40, 60, and 80° C. However, the loss of active sites is higher at higher temperature. This suggests that indirect production of radicals via H2O2 production during ORR is higher at higher temperatures and is a key degradation mechanism for this Fe-N-C catalyst.
QC 20170307