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Preparation of a New Proton Conducting Silicon Membrane for Miniature Fuel Cells

Pages: 171-175

Yi-Tang Chen¹, Sean S.-Y. Lin², Sung-O Kim³, and Su Ha^*,2

¹Department of Photonics, Institute of Electro-optical Engineering, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
²The Gene and Linda Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2710, USA
³Holcombe Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies (COMSET), Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634-0915, USA

Received: June 11, 2008, Accepted: December 17, 2008

Abstract:
The membranes based on silicon substrate filled with Nafion® have been fabricated as a proton exchange membrane for miniature fuel cells. This fabrication utilizes the micromachining procedures including photo-lithography, plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), and dry and wet etching processes. The device size of the silicon membrane filled with Nafion® was 1 cm × 1 cm. The pores were smaller than 500 nm. The cross-sectional shape of the silicon membrane was an inverse pyramid structure to improve its mechanical strength and to enhance its surface treatment process. This technique combines the advantages of Nafion® with a good proton conductivity and silicon membrane, such as easy serial and parallel integration, respectively.

Keywords:

Proton Conducting Silicon Membrane, PEM, Nafion, Miniature Fuel Cells.