• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.155-161
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• 2013

In this study, a metal-plated polycarbonate was adopted as a material for bipolar plates in a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). The coated layers included 40-${\mu}m$-thick copper, 10-${\mu}m$-thick nickel, and 0.3-${\mu}m$-thick gold that respectively played the roles of current conduction, adhesion between copper and gold, and minimization of surface corrosion. The maximum power of the air-breathing PEMFC with polycarbonate bipolar plates was $120mW/cm^2$, which was similar to that of graphite bipolar plates. Finally, the maximum power of a 12-cell stack of polycarbonate bipolar plates was $132.7mW/cm^2$, and it had an operating time of 12 h. Therefore, this was considered a suitable material for bipolar plates in PEMFCs.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.283-291
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• 2011

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) use the bipolar plate of various materials between electrolyte and contact electrode for the stable hydrogen ion exchange activation. The bipolar plate of various materials has representatively graphite and stainless steel. Specially, stainless steels have advantage for low cost and high product rate. In this study, SUS 316 was effectively coated with 600 nm thick F-doped tin oxide (SnOx:F) by electron cyclotron resonance-metal organic chemical vapor deposition and investigated in simulated fuel cell bipolar plates. The results showed that an F-doped tin oxide (SnOx:F) coating enhanced the corrosion resistance of the alloys in fuel cell bipolar plates, though the substrate steel has a significant influence on the behavior of the coating. Coating SUS 316 for fuel cell bipolar plates steel further improved the already excellent corrosion resistance of this material. After coating, the increased ICR values of the coated steels compared to those of the fresh steels. The SnOx:F coating seems to add an additional resistance to the native air-formed film on these stainless steels.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.45 no.8
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• pp.472-476
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• 2008

The surface region of commercial stainless steel 304 and 316 plates has been modified through deposition of the multi-layered coatings composed of titanium film ($0.1{\mu}m$) and gold film ($1-2{\mu}m$) by an electron beam evaporation method. XRD patterns of the stainless steel plates deposited with conductive metal films showed the peaks of the external gold film and the stainless steel substrate. Surface microstructural morphologies of the stainless steel bipolar plates modified with multi-layered coatings were observed by AFM and FE-SEM images. The stainless steel plates modified with $0.1{\mu}m$ titanium film and $1{\mu}m$ gold film showed microstructure of grains of under 100 nm diameter. The external surface of the stainless steel plates deposited with $0.1{\mu}m$ titanium film and $2{\mu}m$ gold film represented somewhat grain growth of Au grains in FE-SEM image. The electrical resistance and water contact angle of the stainless steel bipolar plates modified with multi-layered coatings were examined with the thickness of the gold film.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2007.06a
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• pp.89-92
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• 2007

The metallic bipolar plate in PEMFC is widely used for automotive driving because of its advantages, i) high strength, ii) high chemical stability, iii) low gas permeability and iv) applicability to mass production. Especially, the metallic bipolar plate which is manufactured with the sheet metal stamping process can be applied in automotive PEMFC with less volume and weight because of its thin thickness but the formability and springback problems arise in real manufacturing process. The assessment for formability and springback of metallic bipolar plate should be performed before making stamping die sets. In this work, the methodology for determining the allowable draft angle of flow passage is introduced by using finite element analysis. In analysis results, as the draft angle of flow passage increase, the major strain and thinning is increase with exponential function. The allowable draft angle without fracture is presented by fitting the results. Additionally, the staking results with manufactured metallic bipolar plates by stamping process is presented.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.169-174
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• 2014

The effect of varying amounts of graphite and $TiB_2$ on the electrical conductivity of composite bipolar plates was systematically studied. In this study, Titanium diboride ($TiB_2$) which has a high electrical conductivity, was selected as a filler and a additive material instead of conventional graphite. For proper distribution of the filler and matrix materials, ball milling using alumina balls was conducted for 1h, and then the hot press method was applied for the preparation of composite samples. The results showed a rapid increase in the electrical conductivity of composite bipolar plates at the critical filler content. However, $TiB_2$ and graphite composite bipolar plates showed similar increases in the electrical conductivity even though $TiB_2$ has a higher electrical conductivity than graphite. In addition, it was also found that a small addition of $TiB_2$ to graphite filler could be very effective for increasing the electrical conductivity and flexural strength of the composite bipolar plate.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.92-107
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• 2016

Graphene was coated on austenitic and martensitic stainless steels to simulate the metallic bipolar plate of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). Graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized and was reduced to reduced graphene oxide (rGO) via a hydrazine process. rGO was confirmed by FE-SEM, Raman spectroscopy and XPS. Interfacial contact resistance (ICR) between the bipolar plate and the gas diffusion layer (GDL) was measured to confirm the electrical conductivity. Both ICR and corrosion current density decreased on graphene coated stainless steels. Corrosion resistance was also improved with immersion time in cathodic environments and satisfied the criteria of the Department of Energy (DOE), USA. The total concentrations of metal ions dissolved from graphene coated stainless steels were reduced. Furthermore hydrophobicity was improved by increasing the contact angle.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.347-360
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• 2021

Currently, the demand for eco-friendly energy sources is high, which has prompted research on polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. Both aluminum alloys and nickel alloys, which are commonly considered as materials of bipolar plates in fuel cells, oxide layers formed on the metal surface have excellent corrosion resistance. In this research, the electrochemical characteristics of 6061-T6 aluminum alloy and Inconel 600 were investigated with chloride concentrations in an acid environment that simulated the cathode condition of the PEMFC. After potentiodynamic polarization experiments, Tafel analysis and surface analysis were performed. Inconel 600 presented remarkably good corrosion resistance under all test conditions. The corrosion current density of 6061-T6 aluminum alloy was significantly higher than that of Inconel 600 under all test conditions. Also, 6061-T6 aluminum alloy and Inconel 600 presented uniform corrosion and intergranular corrosion, respectively. The Ni, Cr, and Fe, which are the main chemical compositions of Inconel 600, are higher than Al in the electromotive force series. And a double oxide film of NiO-Cr₂O₃, which is more stable than Al₂O₃, is formed. Thus, the corrosion resistance of Inconel 600 is better.

• Journal of Korea Foundry Society
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.274-283
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• 2011

The vacuum die casting is a promising candidate of the stamping process for fabrication of fuel cell bipolar plate due to its advantages, such as precision casting, mass production and short production time. This study proposes vacuum die casting process to fabricate bipolar plates in fuel cell. Bipolar plates were fabricated under various injection conditions such as molten metal temperature and injection velocity. Also, according to injection velocity conditions, simulation results of MAGMA soft were compared to the experimental results. In case of melt temperature $650^{\circ}C$, misrun occurred. When the melt temperature was $730^{\circ}C$, mechanical properties were low due to dendrite microstructure. Injection velocity has to set at more than 2.0 m/s to fabricate the sound sample. When melt temperature, injection velocity (Fast shot), and vacuum pressure are $700^{\circ}C$, 2.5 m/s and 30 kPa respectively, sample had good formability and few casting defects. Simulation results are mostly in agreement with experimental results.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.481-491
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• 2017

In this study, we developed 300 W lightweight DMFC system for charging secondary battery in small unit military operation. In order to reduce the volumetric shape and weight of the system considering the environment of the individual soldier's, the arranging of system components has been optimized. A metal bipolar plates made of STS-470FC have been implemented to the DMFC stack to meet the weight demand of the system. As a result of the performance test of the stack, the target value was satisfied by outputting 561 W exceeding 24% of the stack output 450 W required to output 300 W required for the entire system. Moreover, 2,655 hours exceeding 1,000 hours also has been satisfied. To ensure good robustness of the metallic bipolar plate based DMFC stack, finite element method based simulations are conducted using a commercial ANSYS Fluent software.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.340-347
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• 2022

In this research, mixed metal oxide (TiO₂, RuO₂) coating was applied to grade 1 titanium as a bipolar plate for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). Electrochemical experiments were carried out in an aqueous solution of pH 3 (H₂SO₄ + 0.1 ppm HF, 80 ℃) determined by DoE. The air was bubbled to simulate a cathode environment. Potentiodynamic polarization test revealed that corrosion current densities of the titanium substrate and MMO-coated specimen were 0.180 µA/cm² and 4.381 µA/cm², respectively. There was no active peak. After potentiostatic experiment, current densities of the titanium substrate and the MMO-coated specimen were 0.19 µA/cm² and 1.05 µA/cm², respectively. As a result of observing the surface before and after the potentiostatic experiment, cracked dried clay structures were observed without corrosion damage. Both the titanium substrate and the MMO-coated specimen could not satisfy the interfacial contact resistance suggested by the DoE. Thus, further research is needed before they could be applied as bipolar plates.