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Rational Design of the Composite Perfluoro-Sulfonic Ionomer for High-Performance Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
Tingting Mao1, Haiyang Fan2, Youxing Liu3
1School of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing100871, China.
Journal of the American Chemical Society
|July 30, 2026
Summary
Researchers developed a new method to prevent platinum catalyst poisoning in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). This innovation enhances catalyst activity and durability, paving the way for high-performance, low-platinum PEMFCs.
Area of Science:
- Electrochemistry
- Materials Science
- Catalysis
Background:
- Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) face challenges in scaling due to high cathodic overpotential and platinum catalyst poisoning by perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) ionomers.
- Current mitigation strategies for PFSA poisoning are largely empirical, lacking quantitative assessment tools.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop quantitative assessment tools for PFSA adsorption and poisoning on platinum catalysts.
- To elucidate the mechanism by which cationic additives suppress platinum poisoning.
- To rationally design advanced composite ionomers for high-performance, low-platinum PEMFCs.
Main Methods:
- Developed an electrochemical probe using ionomer-coated single-crystal Pt(111) to quantify PFSA adsorption.
- Investigated the correlation between cation hydration energy and PFSA adsorption.
- Synthesized and characterized tetramethylammonium-anchored covalent organic frameworks (TMA+-COFs) as ionomer additives.
- Utilized electrochemical and spectroscopic analyses to evaluate composite ionomer performance.
Main Results:
- Identified an inverse correlation between cation hydration energy and PFSA adsorption.
- Demonstrated that TMA+-COFs/PFSA composite layers significantly inhibit sulfonate adsorption and platinum poisoning via electrostatic interactions.
- Achieved 1.7- and 4-fold activity enhancement for industrial Pt/C catalysts in rotating-disk and gas-diffusion electrodes, respectively.
- Attained a high mass activity of 1.08 A mgPt-1 in a PEMFC cathode using TMA+-COFs.
Conclusions:
- The study provides a quantitative method to assess and mitigate platinum catalyst poisoning in PEMFCs.
- Rational design of composite ionomers, like TMA+-COFs/PFSA, offers an alternative to conventional catalyst engineering.
- This approach enables the development of high-performance, low-platinum PEMFCs.
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