Product category:
Materials and components
News Release from: Bac2 | Subject: Blank bipolar plates for PEM fuel cells
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 27 March 2008
Polymer plates to change fuel cell
landscape
The plates can be machined more simply than metal plates, making them ideal for fuel cell prototyping and development work.
Fuel cell materials specialist Bac2 will launch its first standard product, blank bipolar plates for polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells, at the Fuel Cell Pavilion during Hannover Messe 2008 The plates, which are based on Bac2's novel conductive polymer ElectroPhen, can be machined more simply than metal plates, making them ideal for fuel cell prototyping and development work
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 19 Jul 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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Novel conductive composite breaks the mould
Bac2 Electrode Materials has exploited the unique conducting properties of a novel polymer system to develop ElectroPhen, a low cost, mouldable, conductive composite material.
Evaluation for novel conductive composite
ElectroPhen is a low-cost, mouldable, conductive composite material developed by UK company, Bac2 Electrode Materials.
Each plate measures 300 x 200 x 3mm and its conductivity easily exceeds US Department of Energy specifications for use in automotive applications.
Up to 100 plates can be ordered on 7-day delivery.
It is expected that customers will purchase blank plates for fuel cell stack evaluation before migrating quickly to custom-moulded ElectroPhen plates to take maximum advantage of the material's performance and low cost in mass production.
Bipolar plates make up to 30% of the cost of a PEM fuel cell stack.
ElectroPhen plates offer substantial cost savings without compromising performance.
The material has a raw state conductivity one billion times higher than commonly used resin binders, which means that no post-processing, such as extreme temperature or surface machining, is required to meet conductivity goals.
ElectroPhen plates are easily moulded and economical to produce in high volume.
The material can be customised with plasticisers, reinforcers and conductive filler, allowing fine-tuning of its characteristics for specific applications.
ElecroPhen is thermally stable, resilient to temperature and inert towards fuel cell catalysts and membranes.
It cures at room temperature and its basic raw materials are widely available from major chemical suppliers.
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