Effects of ionomer coverage on agglomerate effectiveness in catalyst layers of polymer electrolyte fuel cells

A large proportion of voltage losses in polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) originates in cathode catalyst layers. Catalyst utilization and performance of conventional catalyst layers depend largely on their ionomer content and distribution. The present study explores effects of agglomerate size and ionomer distribution on reaction rate distributions and effectiveness factor of Pt utilization. To study the oxygen reduction reaction, we have developed an agglomerate model, which consists of coupled relations for proton and oxygen transport, metal charging behavior, and interfacial charge transfer kinetics. The model is considered under steady state conditions. Results show that higher effectiveness factor is attained for agglomerates with smaller size and larger oxygen partial pressure on the surface. In addition, low to medium coverage of the ionomer skin layer is beneficial in view of high effectiveness factors due to the optimized interplay of oxygen and proton supply.