Electrically Conductive, Hydrophilic Porous Membrane for Fuel Cell Applications

This Phase I effort seeks to produce a conductive polyethersulfone (PES) microporous membrane for fuel cell water management applications. This membrane will facilitate gas/liquid separations in regenerative fuel cells (RFC). The preferred novel approach will impart electrical conductivity to the PES itself; previous attempts at similar membrane development have only focused on applying a conductive layer to the surface of the PES membrane.This type of porous, conductive membrane would lead to improved water management for fuel cell and electrolyzer systems, and could significantly improve the performance of NASA's RFC. Such an improvement in performance could facilitate the design of smaller, lighter weight RFC systems for renewable energy storage for space applications. This project will result in the novel development of a conductive microporous membrane for NASA fuel cells and electrolyzers, and will also provide better understanding of the preparation and design of conductive membranes for other applications.