VATIS UPDATE Article

A research team led by Professor Lee Young-moo, at Hanyang University, Republic of Korea, has developed fuel-cell membranes that can operate in high-temperatures and low-humidifying conditions. This ground-breaking development is projected to change the currently stagnant fuel-cell membrane research paradigm. When subsequently commercialised, the new fuel-cell membrane is expected to drastically lower the current price of hydrogen fuel-cell membranes, a main component of hydrogen fuel-cell cars, to one-tenth of what it is today.

In addition, this fuel-cell membrane is anticipated to be applied to reverse electrodialysis, a technology that harvests energy from the sea. During the research, researchers applied intermediate temperature plasma on the membrane surface, where fluorinated oligomer hydrocarbon molecules are transported, to form nanocracks. The interest lies in that the researchers developed the world’s first membrane that even under high temperatures (120 °C) and low-humidifying (35%) conditions, hydro ion conductivity is higher and fuel-cell function lasts longer.