Behavior of hydrogen atom at Nafion-Pt interface

• Main Authors: Tsuda, Muneyuki, Diño, Wilson Agerico, Kasai, Hideaki
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2005
• Subjects: Proton exchange membrane fuel cells; Anodes; Charge exchange; Density functionals; Physics
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/6625
• Institution: De La Salle University

We present a mechanism depicting how a hydrogen atom migrates from a platinum catalyst to a Nafion membrane using ab initio calculations based on density functional theory (DFT). The H atom initially adsorbed on Pt is extracted by the sulfonate group (–SO3−), which is a part of the side chain of Nafion. We found partial electron transfer from the H atom to the Pt, which directly binds to the –SO3− group, through this reaction. The electron-poor H atom conducts in Nafion, and the partial electron transfer from the H atom results in the generation of electric power in polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs).