Au Coated Printed Circuit Board Current Collectors Using a Pulse Electroplating Method for Fuel Cell Applications
Sang-Sun Park, Na-Young Shin, Chanmin Lee, Yukwon Jeon +2
AI summary
65% confidenceAu coated PCB current collectors using pulse electroplating improve DMFC performance and stability.
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- System
- MFC
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Abstract
The effect of the Au coated printed circuit board (PCB) as a current collector on the performance of fuel cells is demonstrated. In this study, optimized pulse electroplating was introduced, which was found to be much more effective compared to the direct current (DC) plating for the PCB fabrication based on the passive area from the potentiodynamic polarization scan. Variable electrochemical parameters such as applied potential and frequency for the pulse electroplating method are controlled. Using the polarization tests, the corrosion behavior of the Au coated PCB layer was also observed. From these basic data, the coating methods and electrochemical parameters were systematically controlled to achieve efficient results for direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). The stability test for the cell operation indicates that the micro DMFC with the Au coated PCB substrate formed at a frequency of 10 Hz exhibited the highest stability and performance. As a result, the Au coated PCB substrate using pulse electroplating at 1.5 V and 1 kHz can be a promising current collector for portable DMFCs.
Key findings
- Pulse electroplating is more effective than DC plating for PCB fabrication.
- Au coated PCB layer shows improved corrosion behavior.
- 10 Hz pulse electroplating frequency yields highest stability and performance.
Keywords
Identifiers
- Journal
- Energies
- Year
- 2021