title: Low-Cost and Durable Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzers.
abstract: Cost reduction and high efficiency are the mayor challenges for sustainable H2production via proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis. Titanium-based components such as bipolar plates (BPP) have the largest contribution to the capital cost. This work proposes the use of stainless steel BPPs coated with Nb and Ti by magnetron sputtering physical vapor deposition (PVD) and vacuum plasma spraying (VPS), respectively. The physical properties of the coatings are thoroughly characterized by scanning electron, atomic force microscopies (SEM, AFM); and X-ray diffraction, photoelectron spectroscopies (XRD, XPS). The Ti coating (50 μm) protects the stainless steel substrate against corrosion, while a 50-fold thinner layer of Nb decreases the contact resistance by almost one order of magnitude. The Nb/Ti-coated stainless steel bipolar BPPs endure the harsh environment of the anode for more than 1000 h of operation under nominal conditions, showing a potential use in PEM electrolyzers for large-scale H2production from renewables.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Engineering Thermodynamics, German Aerospace Center, Pfaffenwaldring 38-40, Stuttgart, 70569, Germany.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lettenmeier
authors.affiliation: Hydrogenics Corporation, 220 Admiral Boulevard, Mississauga, ON L5T 2N6, Canada.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Hydrogenics Corporation, 220 Admiral Boulevard, Mississauga, ON L5T 2N6, Canada.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Abouatallah
authors.affiliation: Institute of Materials Research, German Aerospace Center, Linder Hoehe, 51147, Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Saruhan
authors.affiliation: Institute of Materials Research, German Aerospace Center, Linder Hoehe, 51147, Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Freitag
authors.affiliation: Institute of Engineering Thermodynamics, German Aerospace Center, Pfaffenwaldring 38-40, Stuttgart, 70569, Germany.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gazdzicki
authors.affiliation: University of Applied Sciences Esslingen, Dept. of Basic Science, Kanalstrasse 33, 73728, Esslingen, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Morawietz
authors.affiliation: University of Applied Sciences Esslingen, Dept. of Basic Science, Kanalstrasse 33, 73728, Esslingen, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hiesgen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Engineering Thermodynamics, German Aerospace Center, Pfaffenwaldring 38-40, Stuttgart, 70569, Germany.
authors.forename: A S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Gago
authors.affiliation: Institute of Engineering Thermodynamics, German Aerospace Center, Pfaffenwaldring 38-40, Stuttgart, 70569, Germany.|Institute of Energy Storage, University of Stuttgart, Stuttgart, 70550, Germany.
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Friedrich