Carbon fiber fabric improves fuel cell performance

Japan’s Toho Tenax is the main company in the Teijin Group engaged in the carbon fiber business. The company announced on June 16, 2010 that it will commercialize the gas diffusion layer (GDL) for carbon fiber fabrics to be used as an electrode assembly for fuel cells. Minute. The GDL is the main component of the fuel cell electrode. The fuel cell supplies hydrogen and oxygen, collects the generated electrons, and discharges the generated water by means of the membrane. The GDL must be able to conduct electricity and permeate water. The fabric type GDL has better flexibility and strength than the commonly used paper type GDL. The paper type GDL is made by impregnating a carbon fiber board with a resin or other material. With the new fabric structure, the rewinding process can be performed at a high speed, which reduces the use cost. Because no resin or other materials are required, the permeability of water can be further increased, thereby increasing the fuel cell output.

By using Toho Tenax's technologies such as spinning, weaving, and carbonization to create a uniform fabric surface, the carbon fiber fabric GDL has lower contact resistance compared to the conventional fabric type GDL. Low contact resistance can further improve the fuel cell performance. The new GDL has two suitable thicknesses: 260 and 320 μm, and is developing ultra-thin fabrics.