In a method of producing a membrane electrode assembly, a solid polymer electrolyte membrane and gas diffusion layers are stacked together in a stacking direction in a manner that electrode catalyst layers are interposed between at least parts of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and the gas diffusion layers to form a stack body. A load is applied to the stack body in the stacking direction, and the temperature of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane is increased by high frequency dielectric heating. In this manner, the gas diffusion layers, the electrode catalyst layers, and the solid polymer electrolyte membrane are joined integrally to obtain the membrane electrode assembly.

A fuel cell includes: a cell structure body including a cathode, an anode, and a solid electrolyte layer interposed between the cathode and the anode; and a current collector in contact with the cathode, wherein an oxidant is supplied to the cathode through the current collector, the current collector includes a porous body made of a metal material, and a chromium adsorbent carried inside pores of the porous body, the metal material includes a first metal and a second metal, the first metal includes nickel, and the second metal includes at least one selected from the group made of tin, aluminum, cobalt, titanium, manganese, tungsten, copper, silver, and gold.

A fuel cell includes: a cell structure body including a cathode, an anode, and a solid electrolyte layer interposed between the cathode and the anode; and a current collector in contact with the cathode, wherein an oxidant is supplied to the cathode through the current collector, the current collector includes a porous body made of a metal material, and a chromium adsorbent carried inside pores of the porous body, the metal material includes a first metal and a second metal, the first metal includes nickel, and the second metal includes at least one selected from the group made of tin, aluminum, cobalt, titanium, manganese, tungsten, copper, silver, and gold.

Provided is a chromium adsorption material including: a porous body made of a metal material; and a chromium adsorbent carried inside pores of the porous body, wherein the metal material includes a first metal and a second metal, the first metal includes nickel, and the second metal includes at least one selected from the group consisting of tin, aluminum, cobalt, titanium, manganese, tungsten, copper, silver, and gold.

A fuel cell is provided that includes a cell structure, a pair of separators and a plurality of at least partially porous ribs. The cell structure includes an anode, a cathode and an electrolyte membrane, the anode and the cathode being laminated on opposite sides of the electrolyte membrane, respectively. The separators are disposed on both surfaces of the cell structure with gas passages being defined by the separators and the cell structure for circulating two types of gas for power generation. The porous ribs porous ribs are disposed successively on an entire cross-section of the gas passage in a transverse direction with a flow direction of the gas for power generation.

A fuel cell gas diffusion layer includes: a porous carbon fiber base substrate containing discontinuous carbon fibers bonded to each other with carbide, and a porous layer containing at least carbonaceous particles, the porous carbon fiber base substrate having a porous layer (A) with a mean thickness t1 of 10 to 55 m deposited on one surface A thereof, the porous carbon fiber base substrate being impregnated with porous layer (J) at least part of which is exposed at an opposite surface B, the porous carbon fiber base substrate having internal pores with a cross-sectional area accounting for 5% to 40% of the total cross section in a through-plane direction, at least porous layer (A) and porous layer (J) both having a void percentage of 50% to 85%, the porous carbon fiber base substrate having a thickness of 60 to 300 m, and the porous carbon fiber base substrate having a bulk density of 0.20 to 0.45 g/cm.sup.3.

A fuel cell gas diffusion layer includes: a porous carbon fiber base substrate containing discontinuous carbon fibers bonded to each other with carbide, and a porous layer containing at least carbonaceous particles, the porous carbon fiber base substrate having a porous layer (A) with a mean thickness t1 of 10 to 55 m deposited on one surface A thereof, the porous carbon fiber base substrate being impregnated with porous layer (J) at least part of which is exposed at an opposite surface B, the porous carbon fiber base substrate having internal pores with a cross-sectional area accounting for 5% to 40% of the total cross section in a through-plane direction, at least porous layer (A) and porous layer (J) both having a void percentage of 50% to 85%, the porous carbon fiber base substrate having a thickness of 60 to 300 m, and the porous carbon fiber base substrate having a bulk density of 0.20 to 0.45 g/cm.sup.3.

Disclosed are a carbon substrate for a gas diffusion layer of a fuel cell, a gas diffusion layer employing the same, an electrode for a fuel cell, a membrane electrode assembly for a fuel cell, and a fuel cell, wherein the carbon substrate includes a plate-shaped substrate having an upper surface and a lower surface opposite the upper surface, and the plate-shaped substrate includes carbon fibers arranged to extend in one direction (extend unidirectionally) and a carbide of an organic polymer located between the carbon fibers to bind the carbon fibers to each other. Since the carbon substrate according to the present disclosure includes carbon fibers aligned in at least one direction selected from a machine direction (MD) and a cross-machine direction (CMD) by controlling the alignment of carbon fibers, the carbon substrate has excellent mechanical strength, particularly, bending strength, even if its thickness is thin, and thus it is possible to effectively prevent the intrusion phenomenon of the gas diffusion layer into the flow path of the metal separator, and has excellent gas flow characteristics.

A mesh-shaped, porous electric current density distributor is for use with an electrode, and is adapted for providing electric current to an active layer of the electrode. The active layer contacts a face of the current density distributor, and the current density distributor includes a porous mesh having several electrically conductive paths. At least part of the electrically conductive paths extend along a direction of major current flow over the current density distributor. The porous mesh includes in a direction crosswise to the direction of major electric current flow, several paths of an electric insulator. The current carrying capacity of the current density distributor in crosswise direction to the major current flow over the current density distributor is smaller than the current carrying capacity in the direction along the major current flow over the current density distributor.

The present invention relates to an ion exchange membrane, a method for manufacturing the same, and an energy storage device including the same, and the ion exchange membrane includes a porous support including a plurality of pores and an ion conductor filling the pores of the porous support, in which the porous support includes micropores having a size of 31 to 1000 m. The ion exchange membrane may achieve high energy efficiency in the case of being applied to an energy storage device such as a vanadium redox inflow battery due to high charge/discharge cycle durability, high ion-conductivity, and excellent chemical and thermal stability.