1. Dr Bruno G. Pollet – b.g.pollet@bham.ac.uk
Science City Hydrogen Energy away day, 22nd January 2010, HRI

2. DOCTORAL TRAINING CENTRE in HYDROGEN, FUEL CELLS & THEIR APPLICATIONS
EPSRC = £5.5M
9 year programme
50 PhD students
4 year PhD
120 credits (modules) + dissertation
Using existing modules and new modules
13 PhD students currently registered
PhD projects covering Hydrogen generation, Hydrogen storage, Fuel Cell and system integration
Next interview date: 14th /15th April

3. What is a Fuel Cell?
A Fuel Cell is an electrochemical “device” that continuously converts chemical energy into electrical energy for as long as the reactants (fuel and oxidant) are supplied

4. What is an MEA? Flow Field Plate (FFP) Gas diffusion layer
(GDL) and catalyst layer (CL)
[Pt/C ‘ink’]
Proton exchange
Membrane (PEM) e.g. Nafion
MEA thickness1 mm max.;
GDL 330um;
PEM 50um;
CL um

5. Objectives for Improved PEMFC Performance
Decrease in Pt loading due to high cost of Pt down to 0.05 mg.cm-2 (A&C) for a 50kW stack
Smaller active layer for better diffusion & less ohmic drop
Increase in catalyst surface area i.e. decrease Pt size e.g. < 10nm (2 – 4nm)

6. PEM Fuel Cell Research
Low-cost, high-performance & durable ‘engineered’ materials for low-temperature and high-temperature PEMFC in line with the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) technical targets;
Novel low cost materials with high performance & longevity for: current collector plate (CCP), bipolar plate (BPP), gas diffusion layer (GDL), catalyst layer (CL), electrocatalyst (EC) and proton exchange membrane (PEM)
Developing novel low cost fabrication methods & processes for such materials and MEAs (e.g. ultrasound & sonochemistry)
New test methods (ex-situ & in-situ diagnostic) development for determining physical properties, performance & durability of PEMFC
Improving electrocatalysts & noble base metal alloys, catalyst utilisation and electrode design
Developing & characterising non-noble (non-precious) nano-sized metal electrocatalysts in views of reducing cost while improving on performance and durability
PEMFC stack development, Balance of Plant (BoP) and system integration; and Developing, testing and commissioning low cost, high performance Hydrogen Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicles (HFCHVs)

7. PEM Fuel Cell Research projects
Modelling of Novel Tubular Membrane Electrode Assemblies (MEAS) for PEMFC applications – DTC Student
Novel Hydrogen Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle for Transportation in the UK – DTC Student
Low-cost High performance Membrane Electrode Assemblies for the Automotive sector – DTC Student
Size-selected MoS_2 Nanoclusters for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production - – DTC Student
Development of Low Cost High Performance Bipolar Plates for PEMFC Applications – EPSRC Case Student
Development of Low Cost High Performance non-precious Electrocatalysts for PEMFC – EPSRC Student
Development and Characterisation of Novel supports for Electrocatalysts – SF Student
Development of low cost PEMFC stack – SF Student

8. Comparison of MEA Performance
between anodes prepared by a) the galvanostatic pulse method in the absence of ultrasound [], b) the sono-galvanostatic pulse method (20 kHz, 29 W.cm-2) [] and c) conventional method (0.30 mg Pt cm-2 electrodes) []. The fuel cell testing parameters were H2/O2 (1.5/2 stoics), 70oC and 1 atm.
- Electrodes prepared sonoelectrochemically showed better performance
- A power density value of 98.5mW.cm-2 was found for anodes prepared sonoelectrochemically compared with 91.5mW.cm-2 (by galvanostatic pulse method alone) & 86mW.cm-2 (by conventional method),
- An increase of ca. 12mW.cm-2 was found using the sono-galvanostatic pulse method
* B.G. Pollet, A Novel Method for Preparing PEMFC Electrodes by the Ultrasonic and Sonoelectrochemical Techniques, Electrochem. Comm., 11, 2009, 1445

9. SEM Study
Top View
Side View CL
Silent US
GDL CL
GDL

10. Production of NP Pt Ultrasonically
V. Zin, B.G. Pollet and M. Dabalà, Sonoelectrochemical (20 kHz) Production of Platinum Nanoparticles from Aqueous Solutions, Electrochim. Acta, 54(28),

11. BGP’s Outputs for 2009
PBL Chaurasia, K. Kendall, W. Bujalski, S. Du and B.G. Pollet, Influence of Temperature on V-I characteristics for Solar Power Generation based on Chemical Method using Fuel Cell, International Journal of Chemical Sciences: 7(3), 2009,
B.G. Pollet, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Conference: For a Low Carbon Future, Platinum Metal Review, 53(2), 2009, 78.
V. Zin, B.G. Pollet and M. Dabalà, Sonoelectrochemical (20 kHz) Production of Platinum Nanoparticles from Aqueous Solutions, Electrochim. Acta, 54(28),
B.G. Pollet, A Novel Method for Preparing PEMFC Electrodes by the Ultrasonic and Sonoelectrochemical Techniques, Electrochem. Comm., 11, 2009, 1445
K. Kendall, B.G. Pollet, A. Dhir, I. Staffell, B Millington and J. Jostins, Hydrogen Fuel Cell Hydrid Vehicles For Birmingham Campus, J. of Power Sources, accepted December 2009.
S. Gouws, N. Gojela, B.G. Pollet and B. Zeelie, Hydrogen Production from Water Electrolysis, Grove Fuel Cell Symposium, London, UK September 2009.
J. Shang, B.G. Pollet, K. Kendall, Novel Type of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Hybrid Scooter, Grove Fuel Cell Symposium, London, UK September 2009.
B.G. Pollet and K. Kendall, The University of Birmingham Fleet of Zero Emission Hydrogen Powered Cars, GreenFleet magazine, 2009
B.G. Pollet, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies –
An Overview, Sustainable Solutions magazine, 2009

12. BGP’s Outputs for 2009 DTC launch in November 2009 (hosted)
TSB-Cenex event low carbon vehicle Exhibition '09 – dissemination in conference
Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in Idaho Falls, USA – dissemination
Ministries of Energy and Infrastructure, Research and Innovation and, Economic Development in Toronto (Ontario, Canada) – dissemination
Sustainability Live 2009 Sustainability Live 2009 – dissemination in conference
MoU with Ontario region & UoB – HFC activities
MoU with University of Waterloo & School of Chemical Engineering
MoU with University of Ontario Institute of Technology & School of Chemical Engineering
In progress – MoU with National Fuel Cell Research Centre, USA