Film Thickness and Distribution of Electrolyte in Porous Fuel Cell Components

Author

Joshua J. Mitteldorf
Gerald Wilemski, Missouri University of Science and TechnologyFollow

Abstract

The DLVO theory of liquid film stability is used to estimate the thickness of electrolyte films that may be present in molten carbonate fuel cell cathodes. Our result is ≈ 30Å, which is 2 orders of magnitude thinner than the values postulated in thin film models of cathode performance. We also examine carefully the thermodynamic basis of an equation governing the equilibrium of electrolyte among the different porous components of the fuel cell. We show that the validity of this equation is more general than previously recognized in that its derivation does not depend on the assumption of cylindrical or spherical pore geometry.

Recommended Citation

J. J. Mitteldorf and G. Wilemski, "Film Thickness and Distribution of Electrolyte in Porous Fuel Cell Components," Journal of The Electrochemical Society, vol. 131, no. 8, pp. 1784 - 1788, The Electrochemical Society (ECS), Aug 1984.

The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.1149/1.2115960

Department(s)

Physics

Keywords and Phrases

cathode; porosimetry; surfaces; thermodynamics

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

0013-4651

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 1984 The Electrochemical Society (ECS), All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Aug 1984