{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/34526"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/34526","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Investigation of the Effect of Catalyst Layer Composition on the Performance of PEM Fuel Cells","abstract":"The catalyst layer of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is a porous mixture of polymer, carbon, and platinum. The characteristics of the catalyst layer play a critical role in determining the performance of the PEM fuel cell. In this research, sample membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) are prepared using various combinations of polymer and carbon loadings while the platinum catalyst surface area is held constant. For each MEA, polarization curves are determined at common operating conditions. The polarization curves are compared to assess the effects of the catalyst layer composition. The results show that both Nafion and carbon content significantly affect MEA performance. The physical characteristics of the catalyst layer including porosity, thickness, active platinum surface area, ohmic resistance, and apparent Nafion film thickness are investigated to explain the variation in performance. The results show that for the range of compositions considered in this work, the most important factors are the platinum surface area and the apparent Nafion film thickness.","abstract_html":"The catalyst layer of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is a porous mixture of polymer, carbon, and platinum. The characteristics of the catalyst layer play a critical role in determining the performance of the PEM fuel cell. In this research, sample membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) are prepared using various combinations of polymer and carbon loadings while the platinum catalyst surface area is held constant. For each MEA, polarization curves are determined at common operating conditions. The polarization curves are compared to assess the effects of the catalyst layer composition. The results show that both Nafion and carbon content significantly affect MEA performance. The physical characteristics of the catalyst layer including porosity, thickness, active platinum surface area, ohmic resistance, and apparent Nafion film thickness are investigated to explain the variation in performance. The results show that for the range of compositions considered in this work, the most important factors are the platinum surface area and the apparent Nafion film thickness.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Russell, Jason Bradley"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Master of Science","degree_level":"masters","degree_discipline":"Mechanical Engineering","degree_department":"Mechanical Engineering","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Ellis, Michael W."],"committee_members":["von Spakovsky, Michael R.","Nelson, Douglas J."],"year":2003,"date_issued":"2003-07-14","date_published":"2003-07-14","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:22Z","subjects":["Fuel Cell","Nafion","Electrodes","Catalyst Layer","PEMFC","Platinum"],"languages":[],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["etd-08142003-193927"],"render_values":[{"text":"etd-08142003-193927","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://hdl.handle.net/10919/34526","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Ellis, Michael W."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["von Spakovsky, Michael R.","Nelson, Douglas J."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Mechanical Engineering"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Russell, Jason Bradley"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2014-03-14T20:43:25Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2014-03-14T20:43:25Z","2004-09-03"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2003-07-14"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Mechanical Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["masters"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Fuel Cell","Nafion","Electrodes","Catalyst Layer","PEMFC","Platinum"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["etd-08142003-193927"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["http://hdl.handle.net/10919/34526"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The catalyst layer of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is a porous mixture of polymer, carbon, and platinum. The characteristics of the catalyst layer play a critical role in determining the performance of the PEM fuel cell. In this research, sample membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) are prepared using various combinations of polymer and carbon loadings while the platinum catalyst surface area is held constant. For each MEA, polarization curves are determined at common operating conditions. The polarization curves are compared to assess the effects of the catalyst layer composition. The results show that both Nafion and carbon content significantly affect MEA performance. The physical characteristics of the catalyst layer including porosity, thickness, active platinum surface area, ohmic resistance, and apparent Nafion film thickness are investigated to explain the variation in performance. The results show that for the range of compositions considered in this work, the most important factors are the platinum surface area and the apparent Nafion film thickness."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Master of Science"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Investigation of the Effect of Catalyst Layer Composition on the Performance of PEM Fuel Cells"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.committeechair":["Ellis, Michael W."],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["von Spakovsky, Michael R.","Nelson, Douglas J."],"dc:contributor.department":["Mechanical Engineering"],"dc:creator":["Russell, Jason Bradley"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2014-03-14T20:43:25Z"],"dc:date.available":["2014-03-14T20:43:25Z","2004-09-03"],"dc:date.issued":["2003-07-14"],"dc:description.abstract":["The catalyst layer of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is a porous mixture of polymer, carbon, and platinum. The characteristics of the catalyst layer play a critical role in determining the performance of the PEM fuel cell. In this research, sample membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) are prepared using various combinations of polymer and carbon loadings while the platinum catalyst surface area is held constant. For each MEA, polarization curves are determined at common operating conditions. The polarization curves are compared to assess the effects of the catalyst layer composition. The results show that both Nafion and carbon content significantly affect MEA performance. The physical characteristics of the catalyst layer including porosity, thickness, active platinum surface area, ohmic resistance, and apparent Nafion film thickness are investigated to explain the variation in performance. The results show that for the range of compositions considered in this work, the most important factors are the platinum surface area and the apparent Nafion film thickness."],"dc:description.degree":["Master of Science"],"dc:identifier.other":["etd-08142003-193927"],"dc:identifier.uri":["http://hdl.handle.net/10919/34526"],"dc:publisher":["Virginia Tech"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright"],"dc:rights.uri":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["Fuel Cell","Nafion","Electrodes","Catalyst Layer","PEMFC","Platinum"],"dc:title":["Investigation of the Effect of Catalyst Layer Composition on the Performance of PEM Fuel Cells"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Mechanical Engineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["masters"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science"],"thesis:institution_name":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:22Z"}