https://sj.jst.go.jp/news/202509/n0901-01k.html
https://sj.jst.go.jp/news/202509/n0901-01k.html
A research group led by Professor Yutaka Matsuo and Designated Professor Masaya Kawasumi from the Graduate School of Engineering at Nagoya University has developed a technology that dramatically improves the durability of polymer electrolyte membranes (PEMs), which are the heart of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC), using uniquely developed water-soluble fullerene derivatives.
The research group adopted an approach of synthesizing novel fullerene derivatives that are soluble in water and alcohol and uniformly dispersing them in Nafion membranes. Through regioselective introduction of functional groups such as phenol groups and carboxylic acid groups to the spherical carbon structure of fullerenes, they achieved high water solubility compared with conventional hydroxylated fullerenes (fullerenols) while maintaining the π-conjugated structure and also improved affinity with Nafion. This enabled fullerene derivatives to be stably retained in Nafion’s ion clusters and allowed membrane formation with uniform dispersion throughout the entire membrane.
The PhCOOH-5-OH/Ce/Nafion hybrid membrane maintained stable open circuit voltage (OCV) for over 1050 hours, achieving a life more than 10 times longer than conventional membranes.
