• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2006.11a
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• pp.348-351
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• 2006

Bipolar plate, which forms about 50% of the stack cost, is an important core part with polymer electrolyte membrane in PEMFC. Bipolar plates have been commonly fabricated from graphite meterial having high electrical conductivity and corrosion resistance. Lately, many researchers have concentrated their efforts on the development of metallic bipolar plate and stainless steel has been considered as a potential material for metallic bipolar plate because of its high strength, chemical stability, low gas permeability and applicability to mass production. However, it has been reported that its inadequate corrosion behavior under PEMFC environment lead to a deterioration of membrane by dissolved metal ions and an increase in contact resistance by the growth of passive film therefore, its corrosion resistance as well as contact resistance must be improved for bipolar plate application. In this work, several types of coating were applied to 316L and their electrical conductivity and corrosion resistance were evaluated In the simulated PEMFC environment. Application of coating gave rise to low interfacial contact resistances below $19m{\Omega}cm^2$ under the compress force of $150N/cm^2$. It also made the corrosion potential to shift in the posit ive direct ion by 0.3V or above and decreased the corrosion current from ca. $9{\mu}A/cm^2$ to ca. $0.5{\mu}A/cm^2$ in the mixed solution of $0.1N\;N_2SO_4$ and 2ppm HF A coat ing layer under potentiostatic control of 0.6V and $0.75V_{SCE}$ for 500 hours or longer showed some instabilities, however, no significant change in coat Ing layer were observed from Impedance data. In addition, the corrosion current maintained less than $1{\mu}A/cm^2$ for most of time for potentiostatic tests. It indicates that high electrical conductivity and corrosion resistance can be obtained by application of coatings in the present work.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2010.06a
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• pp.143.1-143.1
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• 2010

고분자 전해질막 연료전지(Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell; PEMFC)는 수소를 이용하여 전기를 발생시키는 친환경적이고 이상적인 발전장치로 고효율과 높은 전류밀도를 가지며 그 응용분야가 다양하다. 저온에서 작동하는 PEM fuel cell은 전극에서 효과적인 산화환원반응을 위해 그 촉매로 활성이 우수한 Pt(Platinum)을 사용하고 있으나, Pt의 높은 가격은 연료전지의 상용화에 걸림돌이 되고 있다. 본 연구에서는 연료전지의 Pt/C 촉매 층에서 Pt의 분산성을 높여 Pt의 담지량을 줄이고 작동 중 발생하는 Pt의 응집 현상을 방지하여 Pt의 수명을 연장시킬 목적으로, Au(gold) 나노입자를 첨가한 Pt-Au/C 복합나노촉매를 제조하였다. 본 발표에서는 합성된 Pt-Au/C 복합촉매 중 Au 첨가량이 Pt 촉매의 활성에 미치는 영향을 조사하기 위하여, 복합촉매 중에 금속(Pt+Au)의 총 함량이 30 wt.%와 40 wt.% 인 Pt-Au/C 촉매에 대하여 각각 Au 첨가량을 변화시켜, cyclic voltammetry 법에 의해 Au 첨가 효과를 조사한 결과에 대하여 보고하고자 한다. Au 나노입자를 제조하기 위한 출발 물질로는 $HAuCl_4{\cdot}4H_2O$를 이용하였고 trisodium citrate와 $NaBH_4$를 환원제로 하여, 입경이 5~8 nm 인 Au 콜로이드를 제조하였다. Pt-Au/C 복합나노촉매를 제조하기 위하여 먼저 Au/C 복합분체가 제조되었다. 0.03g의 carbon이 첨가된 carbon 현탁액에 합성된 Au 콜로이드 수용액을 첨가한 후 24시간 동안 교반하여 Au/C 복합분체를 제조하였다. 이 Au/C 복합분체에 $H_2PtCl_6{\cdot}6H_2O$ 수용액을 현탁하고 methanol 을 환원제로 사용해 Pt를 환원 석출시켜 Pt-Au/C 복합촉매를 제조하였다. Pt-Au/C 복합 나노촉매에서 Pt와 Au를 다양한 비율(3:1, 2.5:1.5, 2:2)로 합성하였으며 Pt-Au/C 복합촉매 중 금속(Pt+Au) 촉매의 총 함량은 30 wt.%와 40 wt.%로 각각 제조되었다. Au 나노입자 콜로이드의 분산성은 UV-visible spectrum의 흡광도에 의해 관찰되었고, Pt-Au/C 복합 나노촉매의 형상 및 분산성 분석은 transmission electron microscopy(TEM)에 의해 이루어졌다. 또한, 촉매의 전기화학적 특성평가는 cyclic voltammetry(CV)에 의해 조사되었다.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.223-229
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• 2013

Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) is a power generation system to convert chemical energy of fuels and oxidants to electricity directly by electrochemical reactions. As a catalyst support for PEMFCs, carbon black has been generally used due to its large surface area and high electrical conductivity. However, under certain circumstances (start up/shut down, fuel starvation, ice formation etc.), carbon supports are subjected to serve corrosion in the presence of water. Therefore, it would be desirable to switch carbon supports to corrosion-resistive support materials such as metal oxide. $TiO_2$ has been attractive as a support with its stability in fuel cell operation atmosphere, low cost, commercial availability, and the ease to control size and structure. However, low electrical conductivity of $TiO_2$ still inhibits its application to catalyst support for PEMFCs. In this paper, to explore feasibility of $TiO_2$ as a catalyst support for PEMFCs, $TiO_2$ nanofibers were synthesized by electrospinning and calcinated at 600, 700, 800 and $900^{\circ}C$. Effects of calcination temperature on crystal structure and electrical conductivity of electrospun $TiO_2$ nanofibers were examined. Electrical conductivity of $TiO_2$ nanofibers increased significantly with increasing calcination temperature from $600^{\circ}C$ to $700^{\circ}C$ and then increased gradually with increasing the calcination temperature from $700^{\circ}C$ to $900^{\circ}C$. It was revealed that the remarkable increase in electrical conductivity could be attributed to phase transition of $TiO_2$ nanofibers from anatase to rutile at the temperature range from $600^{\circ}C$ to $700^{\circ}C$.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.41-51
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• 2016

In the stratosphere, the air is stable and a photovoltaic (PV) system can produce more solar energy compared to in the atmosphere. If unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) fly in the stratosphere, the flight stability and efficiency of the mission are improved. On the other hand, the weakened lift force of the UAV due to the rarefied atmosphere can require more power for lift according to the weight and/or wing area of the UAV. To solve this problem, it is necessary to minimize the weight of the aircraft and improve the performance of the power system. A regenerative fuel cell (RFC) consisting of a fuel cell (FC) and water electrolysis (WE) combined PV power system has been investigated as a good alterative because of its higher specific energy. The WE system produces hydrogen and oxygen, providing extra energy beyond the energy generated by the PV system in the daytime, and then saves the gases in tanks. The FC system supplies the required power to the UAV at night, so the additional fuel supply to the UAV is not needed anymore. The specific energy of RFC systems is higher than that of Li-ion battery systems, so they have less weight than batteries that supply the same energy to the UAV. In this paper, for a stratospheric long-endurance hybrid UAV based on an RFC system, three major design factors (UAV weight, wing area and performance of WE) affecting the ability of long-term flight were determined and a simulation-based feasibility study was performed. The effects of the three design factors were analyzed as the flight time increased, and acceptable values of the factors for long endurance were found. As a result, the long-endurance of the target UAV was possible when the values were under 350 kg, above 150 m² and under 80 kWh/kg H₂.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.102-107
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• 2012

The recovery of a Pt anode in a PEMFC through 30 ppm $H_2S/H_2$ exposure was evaluated by using a cyclic voltametry(CV) scan. First, the PEMFC unit cell performanc loss was measured three times under an anode feeding with 30 ppm $H_2S/H_2$ for 1hr at $0.5A/cm^2$ of current density. The initial cell performance was $1.16A/cm^2$ at 0.6 V without $H_2S$ poisoning. After first poisoning step for 1hr the cell performance was decrease to $0.77A/cm^2$, and the further poisoning steps decreased up 0.57 V. Finally, the recovery of the cell performance of $H_2S$ poisoned PEMFC was achieved up to 90.3% by applying CV scan. Moreover, we also found out that another possible approach for over 80% recovery of the cell performance of $H_2S$ poisoned anode Pt catalyst layer was to just inject fresh hydrogen into the anode feeding stream.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.56-61
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• 2011

Alkyl vinyl ethers such as methyl vinyl ether, propyl vinyl ether, isopropyl vinyl ether, butyl vinyl ether and isobutyl vinyl ether are usually used as industrial solvents and chemical intermediates in the chemical or pharmaceutical industry. Recently, they are popularly used as raw materials for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells and as cellulose dyeing assistants. However, very few investigations about process design and operation data were reported for alkyl vinyl ether compounds and there are no data for propyl vinyl ether(PVE) systems as far as we know. In this work, the isothermal VLE data are reported at 333.15 K for the ternary systems of {PVE + ethanol + benzene} by using headspace gas chromatography(HSGC) and these VLE data were correlated using Wilson, NRTL and UNIQUAC equations. The excess volumes($V^E$) and deviations in molar refractivity(${\Delta}R$) data are also reported for the sub binary systems {PVE + ethanol}, {ethanol + benzene} and {PVE + benzene} at 303.15 K. These data were correlated with Redlich-Kister equation. In addition, isoclines of $V^E$ and DR for ternary system {PVE + ethanol + benzene} were also calculated from Radojkovi equation.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.142-147
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• 2009

The influence of graphitization of carbon support on the electrochemical corrosion of carbon and sintering of Pt particles are investigated by measuring $CO_2$ emission at a constant potential of 1.4 V for 30 min using on-line mass spectrometry and cyclic voltammogram. In comparison to commercial Pt/C (from Johnson Matthey), highly graphitized carbon nanofiber (CNF) supported Pt catalyst exhibits lower performance degradation and $CO_2$ emission. As the more carbon corrosion occurred, the more prominent changes were detected in electrochemical characteristics of fuel cell. This indicates that the carbon corrosion affects significantly the fuel cell durability. From the observed results, CNF is considered to be more corrosion resistant material as a catalyst support. However, CNF shows higher aggregation of Pt particles under repeated cyclic voltammetry between 0 and 0.8 V where the carbon corrosion is not initiated.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.181-188
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• 2009

Pt catalyst was adsorbed on Carbon nanofiber (CNF) by modified polyol method after acid treatment of the carbon support with $HNO_3$ and $H_{2}SO_{4}$. As the time for acid treatment increases, more oxygen functional groups on carbon surface were produced which improve the loading amount and dispersion of Pt catalyst on carbon supports. In order to inspect the effect of CNF acid treatment time on electrochemical corrosion, constant potential of 1.4 V was applied to a single cell for 30 min and the amount of $CO_2$ emitted was monitored with on-line mass spectrometry. According to the results of our experiment, more $CO_2$ was produced with Pt/ oxidized-CNF catalyst in compared to that with unoxidized-CNF. Increasing acid treatment time also induces the more $CO_2$ emission. Besides, performance degradation after corrosion test expanded with severer carbon corrosion. From the observed results, it can be concluded that the acid treatment of CNF is beneficial to catalyst loading, but it also is a significant factor declining the fuel cell durability by accelerating electrochemical oxidation of carbon support.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2009.11a
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• pp.131-131
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• 2009

최근 환경규제가 강화되면서 친환경적인 전력생산 요구 등의 외부환경 변화에 따른 우리나라의 전력구조가 기존의 중압 집중형 발전을 탈피한 분산전원 발전에 대한 관심이 증대되고 있는 실정이다. 특히, 분산전원으로서의 전력생산은 공급의 안전성, 경쟁력 및 에너지의 지속성 등이 요구되어지는데, 재생에너지가 가지고 있는 에너지 지속성의 한계 및 설치의 제약성을 탈피할 수 있는 시스템으로 현재 연료전지시스템이 가장 근접해 있는 실정이다. 즉, 도시가스 인프라가 우수하고 인구조밀 지역이 많은 우리나라의 특성상 각 가정 및 건물에 쉽게 설치하고 공급의 안전성을 갖는 건물용 연료전지는 최근 가장 각광받고 있는 분산전원 시스템 중의 하나이다. 올해부터 모니터링사업의 일환으로 수용가에 설치 될 연료전지 시스템이 얼마나 안정적으로 전기와 열을 각 가정에 공급하고 시스템의 안전성을 확보하는 가는 건물용 연료전지의 분산전원으로서의 가능성 및 국민의 수용성을 증대시키는 중요한 역할을 할 것이다. 연료전지시스템은 상용전력과 연계되어 있기 때문에 시스템의 안정성 뿐만 아니라 상용전력의 변화에 대응하여 안정적인 운전을 하는지에 대한 평가가 필수적이다. 이에 따라 본 연구에서는 가정용 연료전지시스템의 성능 및 안전성평가의 일환으로 계통연계형 전력변환장치의 성능 및 안전성을 평가 하고자 한다. 연료전지 검사를 위한 계통연계형 전력변환장치의 시험평가 항목으로는 크게 정상특성성능시험, 보호기능성능시험, 과도응답특성성능시험 및 외부사고성능시험 등으로 나뉘어진다. 본 연구에서는 외부사고 성능시험 항목들인 출력측 단락시험, 계통전압 순간정전?순간강하시험 및 부하차단 시험 등을 통하여 외부사고에 대한 성능 및 안전성을 평가하였다. 외부사고 성능시험의 주 목적은 시스템의 이상 운전이 아니라 외부의 영향에 따른 시스템의 안전성 및 전력품질을 평가한다. 출력측 단락시험을 수행하기 위해서 전력변환장치를 정격 출력 전압, 정격 출력 주파수 및 정격 출력에서 운전한 후, 교류 전원장치는 단락 전류를 검출하여, 사고 발생 후 0.3초 이내에 개방하도록 설정하였다. 여기서, 단락 저항 Rsc를 정격 전류의 10배 이상에 해당하는 부하와 같은 값으로 설정하였다. 스위치 SWSC를 폐로하여 단락 상태를 만들며, 이 때 전력변환장치의 출력전류와 차단 또는 정지 시간을 측정하였다. 실험 결과에 대한 판정기준은 단락전류를 검출하여 0.5초 이내에 개폐기 개방 또는 게이트 블록 기능이 동작하여 시스템을 안정하게 정지시키고 시스템 어떤 부위에도 손상이 없어야 한다. 실험 결과 파워컨디셔너의 출력전류 및 차단 또는 정지된시간이 40ms로 나타났고, 출력전류의 파형도 매우 안정함을 볼 수 있었다. 이와 같이 모든 실험을 수행한 결과 외부사고에 대하여 시스템이 안전하게 정지하는 등 연료전지 시스템의 안전성을 확인하였다.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.81-88
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• 2010

Small size polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) stacks were prepared using carbon composite and graphite bipolar plates and their performances were evaluated on reactant gas and operating time. In comparison to single cell and stack, it was identified that home-made bipolar plate was well-designed to maximize stack performance as high as that of single cell. During long-term operation, the performances of stacks using two different kinds of bipolar plates were compared. The decrease of performance in both stacks was accelerated with increasing load current. It was observed from stack test that the stack performance using carbon composite bipolar plate was very similar to that using graphite bipolar plate.