Forblue in Focus: Enhanced Durability and Performance Characterization for Fuel Cell Applications

¹ Department of Chemical Engineering, Politeknik Negeri Bandung, Bandung Barat, 40559, Indonesia
² Department of Refrigeration, Air-cinditioning and Energy Engineering, National Chin-Yi University of Technology, Taichung, 411030, Taiwan
³ Centre for Energy Cells and Green Hydrogen Research and Innovation (FUEL-X), Politeknik Negeri Bandung, Bandung Barat, 40559, Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: haryadi@polban.ac.id

Abstract

Proton Exchange Fuel Cells (PEMFC) stand out due to their high efficiency, ability to operate at low temperatures, and wide range of applications. This study focuses on the performance testing of a single-cell PEMFC using an Asahi Glass membrane, Forblue SX-0935DH series, with a size of 5 x 5 cm MEA. The anode gas diffusion electrode (GDE) uses carbon paper with a Pt/C catalyst loading of 0.5 mg/cm², while the cathode GDE uses carbon paper with a Pt-Ru/C catalyst loading of 0.5 mg/cm². XRD characterization revealed peaks at 2θ values of 16.28° and 38.79°. SEM-EDS analysis showed elemental compositions of fluorine 45.39%, carbon 54.21%, and sulfur 0.39% in area 1, and fluorine 88.15% and sulfur 11.85% in another area. FTIR analysis identified key functional groups in the membrane, such as -SO₃⁻ at 1124 cm⁻¹ and 1323 cm⁻¹, and C-F at 486 cm⁻¹. The optimum performance of the single cell was obtained from MEA at a hydrogen flow rate of 300 mL/min. The I-V curve showed an open circuit voltage (OCV) of 0.92 V, while the I-P curve exhibited a maximum power density of 3.872 mW/cm2 at a current density of 8.8 mA/cm².