Grants and Contributions:

Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year. (2017-2018 to 2018-2019)

Hydrogenics, a Canadian producer of hydrogen fuel cells, is looking to produce thinner and more definedx000D
bipolar plates which will result in the production of more efficient fuel cells used for low density energyx000D
storage produced by renewable resources such as wind and solar. The current technology and materials used tox000D
manufacture the plates does not allow for the desired thickness or structure. As such it is necessary to develop ax000D
material that can be readily shaped while also allowing for fine definition of the plate structure and not add ax000D
significant increase in cost, or loss of conductivity. Thus, the development of such a material presents manyx000D
major technical challenges related to energy density, contact resistance, strength and formability to be solved; ax000D
portion of these challenges will be examined through this project. The main challenge handled in this study isx000D
the high level yet not completely uniform dispersion of carbon filler for conductivity in a highly viscousx000D
polymer matrix required to develop the required material. Conductivity requires pathways produced byx000D
aggregated 'chains' of fillers through the thickness of the part that are uniformly spread out in-plane. Thisx000D
requires an atypical level of mixing control, complicated by the very high viscosity of the system. Anx000D
understanding of polymer chemistry, interfacial science, and polymer processing is required to systematicallyx000D
overcome these challenges.x000D
The goal of this six-month project is to develop examples of the desired material for Hydrogenics, for thex000D
production of highly conductive, lightweight bipolar plates. The goal will be met through a systematic study ofx000D
filler to polymer ratio, looking at different fillers and compatibilizing additives. The resulting blend willx000D
increase the economics of fuel cell production typically used for low density energy storage increasing thex000D
efficiency of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar.