Construction of Membrane Electrode Assembly (MEA – the Heart of Fuel Cells) with Proton Conducting MOFs/CPs, COFs, HOFs and POMs

This perspective highlights the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) constructed from crystalline solid-state proton-conductors (SSPCs) such as MOFs/CPs, COFs, HOFs, and POMs to validate their reliability and practicality in H₂/O₂ fuel cell systems. Critical discussion on fuel cell performance parameters, challenges and future prospects are presented.

Abstract

The transition of a material from academia to industry is of significant interest. Although extensive efforts have been devoted toward design and development of various crystalline solid-state proton conductors (SSPCs) such as MOFs/CPs, COFs, HOFs, and POMs with impressive conductivity up to 10⁻² – 10⁻¹ S cm⁻¹, less attention has been paid to verify their potentiality via membrane electrode assembly (MEA) construction for the usage in H₂/O₂ fuel cells, which is the ultimate goal of such R&D. Herein, we aim to highlight the MEA fabricated from such SSPCs to validate their reliability and practicality for H₂/O₂ fuel cells. An in-depth discussion with the comparison of several industrially relevant parameters such as open circuit voltages, power density, current density, and durability assessments along with their operating conditions is the key to this contribution. Most importantly, the ‘Critical Analysis’ section provides critical thoughts on the so far developments along with the performance comparison of four sorts of materials with pros and cons, while identification of existing issues and future recommendations have been made in the ‘Future Prospects’ section, which will be beneficial for chemists in getting sufficient new chemical insights in the interest of engineers and fuel cell industry partners.