An electrochemical device includes a lithium anode having a red poly(benzonitrile) coating covering at least a portion of the anode; a separator and an air cathode comprising reduced graphene oxide over gas diffusion layer; and an electrolyte comprising an ether solvent, benzonitrile, and a lithium salt.

A hydrophilic porous carbon electrode which has excellent hydrophilicity, which has high reaction activity when used for a battery, and with which excellent battery characteristics is able to be obtained is provided. A hydrophilic porous carbon electrode is a sheet-form hydrophilic porous carbon electrode in which a carbon fiber is bonded using a resin carbide and has a contact angles θ.sub.A of water on both surfaces in a thickness direction being 0 to 15° and a contact angle θ.sub.B of water in a middle portion in the thickness direction being 0 to 15°. The hydrophilic porous carbon electrode is obtained by forming the carbon fiber and a binder fiber into a sheet, impregnating the sheet into a thermosetting resin, subjecting it to heat press processing, and then subjecting it to carbonization at 400 to 3000° C. in an inert atmosphere. The hydrophilic porous carbon electrode is transported and is subjected to a heat treatment while an oxidizing gas flows at 400 to 800° C. in a direction perpendicular to a direction in which the hydrophilic porous carbon electrode is transported to be subjected to hydrophilization.

A battery performance of a metal-air battery is improved while still maintaining a low environmental burden. A metal-air battery includes an air electrode formed from a co-continuous substance having a three-dimensional network structure in which a plurality of nanostructures are integrated by noncovalent bonds; an anode; and an electrolyte disposed between the air electrode and the anode, in which the electrolyte is a gel electrolyte obtained by gelling an aqueous solution containing an ion conductor with a gelling agent, and the gelling agent is constituted of at least one of a plant-derived polysaccharide, a seaweed-derived polysaccharide, a microbial polysaccharide, an animal-derived polysaccharide, and a group of acetic acid bacteria that produce the polysaccharides.

Nanoporous oxygen reduction catalyst material comprising PtNiIr, the catalyst material preferably having the formula Pt.sub.xNi.sub.yIr.sub.z, wherein x is in a range from 26.6 to 47.8, y is in a range from 48.7 to 70, and z is in a range from 1 to 11.4. The nanoporous oxygen reduction catalyst material is useful, for example, in fuel cell membrane electrode assemblies.

The present invention relates to an electrode catalyst for a fuel cell that includes a carbon support (11) having pores (13) and catalyst particles containing platinum or a platinum alloy supported on the carbon support (11). The pores (13) of the carbon support (11) have a mode size of pores (13) in a range of 2.1 nm to 5.1 nm. A total pore volume of the pores (13) of the carbon support (11) is in a range of 21 cm.sup.3/g to 35 cm.sup.3/g. A distance between the catalyst particles and a surface of the carbon support (11) is in a range of 2.0 nm to 12 nm as a distance of a 50% cumulative frequency.

The present invention concerns a method for preparing a catalyst coated membrane including the steps of: coating a substrate with a first catalyst dispersion thereby obtaining a first catalyst dispersion coated substrate, providing a second side of a membrane with a support film, coating a first side of the membrane with a second catalyst dispersion, thereby obtaining a second catalyst dispersion coated first side of the membrane, drying the first catalyst dispersion thereby obtaining a first catalyst coated substrate or drying the second catalyst dispersion coated first side of the membrane thereby obtaining a second catalyst coated first side of the membrane, laminating the first catalyst coated substrate to the second catalyst dispersion coated first side of the membrane or laminating the first catalyst dispersion coated substrate to the second catalyst coated first side of the membrane so that the first catalyst and the second catalyst superimpose, thereby forming a laminate including a membrane comprising a first catalyst layer, drying the laminate, removing the support film from the second side of the membrane, coating a third catalyst dispersion on the second side of the membrane, drying the third catalyst dispersion, thereby obtaining a second catalyst layer on the membrane, and removing the substrate from the first catalyst coated substrate.

A method of manufacturing a membrane electrode assembly, includes: forming catalyst coated membrane using an electrode catalyst layer containing an ionomer having a sulfonic acid group and a catalyst carrier, and an electrolyte membrane; applying an ionization accelerator having a low molecular weight component represented by a chemical formula C.sub.lH.sub.mO.sub.n (where l, m, and n are natural numbers) for accelerating generation of sulfate ions, to the catalyst coated membrane; performing UV irradiation on the ionization accelerator applied to the catalyst coated membrane; heating the catalyst coated membrane having the ionization accelerator subjected to the UV irradiation; and bonding a gas diffusion layer containing a radical inhibiting substance to an outer surface of at least one of the ionization accelerator subjected to the UV irradiation or the catalyst coated membrane.

A method for manufacturing a functionalized metal oxide product configured to be used in an anode catalyst layer of a fuel cell can include forming a catalyst solution, which can include mixing a metal oxide in water. A stock solution can be formed by mixing a fatty acid in water. The stock solution can be added to the catalyst solution to form a solid fraction and a liquid fraction. The solid fraction can be removed from the liquid fraction. The solid fraction can be washed and dried, thereby forming the functionalized metal oxide product. The functionalized metal oxide product is configured to improve the cell reversal tolerance of the fuel cell.

The invention includes a method of making a catalytic electrode for a metal-air cell in which a carbon-catalyst composite is produced by heating a manganese compound in the presence of a particulate carbon material to form manganese oxide catalyst on the surfaces of the particulate carbon, and then adding virgin particulate carbon material to the carbon-catalyst composite to produce a catalytic mixture that is formed into a catalytic layer. A current collector and an air diffusion layer are added to the catalytic layer to produce the catalytic electrode. The catalytic electrode can be combined with a separator and a negative electrode in a cell housing including an air entry port through which air from outside the container can reach the catalytic electrode.

A metal-air battery includes an anode portion including a metal; a cathode portion including a porous layer, wherein the porous layer includes a reduced non-stacked graphene oxide; and an electrolyte disposed between the anode portion and the cathode portion.