Electrochemical response of zirconia-coated 316L stainless-steel in a simulated proton exchange membrane fuel cell environment

W. G. Lee, K. H. Cho, S. B. Lee, S. B. Park, H. Jang

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    28 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    The corrosion resistance of zirconia-coated austenitic stainless-steel 316L was investigated in a simulated proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) environment. The zirconia coating was performed using a sol-gel dip coating method and electrochemical tests were carried out at 80 °C in 1 M H2SO4 solution to accelerate corrosion. The results showed that the precursor containing zirconium alkoxide and zirconium acetate hydroxide changed into tetragonal zirconia, producing a surface film without cracks. Potentiodynamic tests showed that the corrosion resistance of the zirconia-coated 316L stainless-steel was improved by one order of magnitude compared to the bare specimen in terms of the current density. Potentiostatic experiments also showed enhanced corrosion prevention due to zirconia coating under the simulated PEMFC conditions. However, the high interfacial contact resistance (ICR) of the zirconia film suggested that the modification of the zirconia film should be performed to impart higher electrical conductivity for the successful application of zirconia-coated metallic bipolar plates.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)268-272
    Number of pages5
    JournalJournal of Alloys and Compounds
    Volume474
    Issue number1-2
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2009 Apr 17

    Bibliographical note

    Funding Information:
    This work was supported by grants from the Seoul R&BD Program of the Korea University.

    Keywords

    • Corrosion resistance
    • Interfacial contact resistance
    • Proton exchange membrane fuel cell
    • Sol-gel
    • Zirconia

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Mechanics of Materials
    • Mechanical Engineering
    • Metals and Alloys
    • Materials Chemistry

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