Three-dimensional (3D) porous flow fields have been utilized to achieve ultrahigh power density for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). However, issues such as the severe corrosion and high interface contact resistance of 3D porous flow field limit the effective enhancement in power density. In this work, porous flow fields with various pore structures, i.e., Ni foam and Ti felt are employed and further decorated with carbon coating using the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method to improve the anti-corrosion capacity. Meanwhile, the through-plane electrical conductivity and hydrophobicity are collectively improved for Ni foam and Ti felt by the carbon coating. Single fuel cell (FC) tests show that both the peak power density (PPD) and limiting current density (LCD) are improved for PEMFCs assembled with C@Ni foam and C@Ti felt flow fields in the cathode. The corresponding electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) confirms that the improved PPD (C@Ti felt) is attributed to the collective improvements in electrical conductivity and anti-corrosion capacity, and the improved LCD (C@Ni foam) is attributed to enhanced water removal capacity. The triple improvements in the intrinsic property of porous flow field materials obtained in this work are expected to offer novel approaches for developing PEMFCs with ultrahigh power density.

中文翻译：

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实现多孔流场材料固有性能和质子交换膜燃料电池电化学性能的三重改进

三维（3D）多孔流场已被用来实现质子交换膜燃料电池（PEMFC）的超高功率密度。然而，3D多孔流场的严重腐蚀和高界面接触电阻等问题限制了功率密度的有效提升。在这项工作中，采用了具有各种孔隙结构的多孔流场，即泡沫镍和钛毡，并利用化学气相沉积（CVD）方法进一步用碳涂层装饰，以提高抗腐蚀能力。同时，通过碳涂层，泡沫镍和钛毡的贯穿面导电性和疏水性得到了共同改善。单燃料电池（FC）测试表明，在阴极中组装有C@Ni泡沫和C@Ti毡流场的PEMFC的峰值功率密度（PPD）和极限电流密度（LCD）均得到改善。相应的电化学阻抗谱（EIS）证实，PPD（C@Ti毡）的改进归因于导电性和防腐能力的集体提高，而LCD（C@Ni泡沫）的改进归因于除水能力的增强容量。这项工作中获得的多孔流场材料固有性能的三重改进有望为开发具有超高功率密度的质子交换膜燃料电池提供新的方法。