Weber Group Publishes Paper on Substrate/Ionomer Interactions

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab's Weber Group, a part of the Energy Conversion Group, have published new research that could have significant implications for how specific fuel cell materials perform in different environments. Their paper,  "Exploring substrate/ionomer interaction under oxidizing and reducing environments," was published in the February 2018 issue of Electrochemistry Communications. 

The work pertains to ionomer thin films, which currently have limitations that hinder widespread commercialization of polymer-electrolyte fuel cells. Comparing the performance of Nafion ionomer thin-films on platinum substrates in both oxidizing and reducing environments, the researchers were able to document differences in the amount of swelling, densification and aging rates, depending on the conditions present.