Joshua Snyder, PhD
Joshua
Snyder, PhD, associate professor of chemical and biological engineering, received an a
ward from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory for his project entitled
“Advanced PILBCP Ionomer Composites for Durable Heavy-Duty Proton-Exchange
Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC).”
The project is a part of the Million Mile Fuel Cell Truck Consortium within
the U.S. Department of Energy, which aims to make generational leaps in
material development, integration and longevity for long duration trucking
applications.
This project aims to improve PEMFC performance with new ionomeric materials
that create an optimal interface with catalysts. The advanced PILBCP ionomer
is composed of a phase segregated structure with distinct polymeric “block”
chemistries that are targeted for ionic conductivity, gas permittivity and
kinetic enhancement. Improved reactant mobility and optimized reaction
kinetics, as well as enhanced material durability, through integration of
the new ionomer will address existing limitations in commercial PEMFCs,
mitigating many of the sources of active area and activity loss over an
extended PEMFC lifetime.