A family of customizable tethering molecules for tethering cofactors such as, but not necessarily limited to, nicotinamine adenine dinucleotide (NAD+/NADH, NAD(P)+/NAD(P)H) to substrates or structures formed from or including graphene-like materials is described. The tethered cofactor can then be used, for example, as biosensors employed for clinical diagnostic, food industry, medical drug development and environmental and military applications, as well as in reagentless biofuel cells for power generation.

A catalyst layer for a fuel cell, wherein the catalyst layer comprises a catalyst-supporting carbon and an ionomer; wherein, in a particle size distribution obtained by the laser diffraction/scattering method, the catalyst-supporting carbon has at least two aggregate particle size peaks at less than 1 μm and at 1 μm or more; wherein, when a thickness of the catalyst layer is divided into three equal parts, the catalyst layer has a first region on a gas diffusion layer side, a second region in a middle part, and a third region on an electrolyte membrane side; and wherein a void ratio V.sub.G of the first region is 5% or more higher than a void ratio V.sub.M of the third region.

A method for preparing M-N—C catalytic material utilizing ball-milling with or without the addition of a sacrificial support.

An electrically conductive hybrid material includes: a covalent organic framework having pores; and a conductor material, wherein the covalent organic framework is supported on the conductor material. The covalent organic framework that does not have electron conductivity is supported on the conductor material such as a carbon material, thereby can be given the electron conductivity, and becomes usable as such a catalyst material and such an electrode material, which involve the electron transfer, these materials including an electrode catalyst material of a fuel cell, and the like.

The present invention relates to a metal phthalocyanine polymer that includes a repeating structural unit obtained by amide bonding of a structural unit represented by the following general formula (1a) to a structural unit represented by the following general formula (2a): ##STR00001## With general formula (1a), L is a divalent or trivalent metal ion belonging to Period 3 to Period 5 on the long-form periodic table. With general formula (2a), M is a divalent or trivalent metal ion belonging to Period 3 to Period 5 on the long-form periodic table.

To provide an economical fuel cell electrode catalyst which can be used in place of platinum as a simple substance or a platinum alloy and has easy-to-control catalytic power, a molecular metal complex is used as a fuel cell electrode catalyst which molecular metal complex is a mononuclear or multinuclear coordination compound that has a particular structure, that is not a polymer compound, and that does not have a layered structure.

The present invention provides an anion exchange resin capable of producing an electrolyte membrane for a fuel cell, a binder for forming an electrode catalyst layer and a battery electrode catalyst layer. The anion exchange resin of the present invention has a hydrophobic unit, a hydrophilic unit and divalent fluorine-containing groups. The hydrophobic unit has divalent hydrophobic groups composed of one aromatic ring or a plurality of aromatic rings that are repeated via carbon-carbon bond. The hydrophilic unit has divalent hydrophilic groups composed of one aromatic ring or a plurality of aromatic rings, at least one of which has an anion exchange group, that are repeated via carbon-carbon bond. The divalent fluorine-containing groups have a specific structure and are bonded via carbon-carbon bond to the hydrophobic unit and/or the hydrophilic unit and/or a moiety other than these units.

A mixed reactant fuel cell (MRFC) including a MRFC-optimized electrocatalyst utilizing a combination of selective catalysts and selective fuel distributors.

The present specification relates to a carrier-nanoparticle complex, a catalyst including the same, an electrochemical cell or a fuel cell including the catalyst, and a method for preparing the same.

An electrochemical oxygen reduction catalyst comprising platinum-containing nanoparticles and at least one member selected from the group consisting of a melamine compound, a thiocyanuric acid compound, and a polymer containing the melamine compound or the thiocyanuric acid compound as a monomer is an electrochemical oxygen reduction catalyst having a high oxygen reduction activity (small overvoltage).