Good Conduct

This article focuses on research on a new member developed, which if textured on the nanoscale will let fuel cells triple the current they can carry. Joseph M. DeSimone, a professor of chemistry and chemical engineering at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and at North Carolina State University, said he has found a way to give fuel cell membrane some texture and more than triple its conductivity. DeSimone and his team have managed so far to increase the surface area by more than seven times, which means seven times the performance, and DeSimone said he may be able to bring that multiple up to as much as 50. The nano-etched membrane is a liquid polymer, so a fuel cell could be built from the outside in. DeSimone also hopes to increase the material’s performance in humidity and test how it responds to a cycle of low and high humidity.