Design and fabrication of carbon nanotube-based microfuel cell and fuel cell stack coupled with hydrogen storage device

A metal hydride-based hydrogen storage device capable of storing 70 l of hydrogen reversibly at ambient conditions with 500 g of ZrMn0.85Cr0.1V0.05Fe0.5Ni0.5ZrMn0.85Cr0.1V0.05Fe0.5Ni0.5 has been designed and developed. Good quality of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) have been synthesized by pyrolysis of acetylene over hydrogen decrepitated alloy hydride catalyst. Pt-supported MWNTs (Pt/MWNTs) electrocatalysts have been prepared by chemical reduction method using functionalized MWNTs. Fabrications of a fuel cell stack and a planar configured microfuel cell have been done using membrane electrode assembly prepared with Pt/MWNTs electrocatalyst and Nafion 1135 membrane. Performance studies of fuel cell stack and microfuel cell were done by coupling them to hydrogen storage device followed by demonstration of the working of electronic devices.