Observation of water droplets in microporous layers for polymer electrolyte fuel cells by X-ray computed nano-tomography

An X-ray computed nano-tomography (nano-CT) system has been established at the BL33XU beamline of SPring-8. The optical system consists of pseudo-K ö hler illumination with a sector condenser zone plate, an apodization Fresnel zone plate as the objective lens, and a Zernike phase plate. The imaging detector is a fiber-coupling type X-ray camera. The performance of the X-ray nano-CT system was confirmed by imaging an X-ray test chart. The system was subsequently applied to the observation of a microporous layer for polymer electrolyte fuel cells and a simulated microporous layer including liquid water. The nano-CT system, which can perform a computed tomography measurement in less than 4   min, allowed visualization of a spherical water droplet produced in the microporous layer. In the present study, the shape of water droplets in a nanoscale porous structure is investigated.
Source: Journal of Synchrotron Radiation - Category: Physics Authors: Tags: X-ray computed nano-tomography polymer electrolyte fuel cell gas diffusion layer microporous layer water droplet hydrophobic material research papers Source Type: research