On the Contamination of Membrane–Electrode Assembles
of Water Electrolyzers with Solid Polymer Electrolyte
by the Elements of Titanium Alloys1
S. A. Grigorieva, *, D. G. Bessarabovb, and A. S. Glukhova, c
Translated by T. Kabanova
aNational Research University “Moscow Power Engineering Institute,” Krasnokazarmennaya st. 14, Moscow, 111250 Russia
bHySA Infrastructure Center of Competence, North-West University, Potchefstroom, 2520 South Africa
cNational Research Center “Kurchatov Institute”, Akad. Kurchatov sq. 1, Moscow, 123182 Russia
Correspondence to: *e-mail: sergey.grigoriev@outlook.com
1Published on the basis of a report delivered at the 13th International Meeting “Fundamental Problems of Solid State Ionics,” Chernogolovka, 2016.
Received 1 August, 2016
Abstract—The aspects of contamination of membrane–electrode assemblies of water electrolyzers with solid polymer electrolyte by the elements of titanium alloys (Ti and Fe) are considered. These alloys are used as the material for current collectors/gas-diffusion electrodes, bipolar plates, and other elements of electrolysis system. It is shown that titanium is one of the main impurities that contaminate the membrane and electrocatalytic layers of membrane–electrode assembly in the case that deionized water is used as the reagent. The membrane contamination can lead to the degradation of electrolyzer characteristics and its failure.
Keywords: water electrolysis, solid polymer electrolyte, membrane, electrocatalytic layer, titanium alloy, degradation of characteristics
DOI: 10.1134/S1023193517080067