Disclosed herein is a method of manufacturing a support for a catalyst of a fuel cell. The method may include preparing an admixture including a carbon material and a cerium precursor into a reactor, providing the admixture in a reactor, raising a temperature of the reactor to a predetermined temperature, and introducing water vapor into the reactor to perform an activation reaction of the carbon material.

An electrochemical hydrogen pump includes an electrolyte membrane, an anode catalyst layer, a cathode catalyst layer, an anode gas diffusion layer, a cathode gas diffusion layer, an anode separator, a cathode separator, a first end plate and a second end plate that are disposed on the respective ends of at least one hydrogen pump unit in which the electrolyte membrane, the catalyst layers, the gas diffusion layers, and the separators are stacked on each other, a fastener that fastens the end plates and at least one hydrogen pump unit, and a voltage applier. The electrochemical hydrogen pump transfers hydrogen from the anode catalyst layer to the cathode catalyst layer and pressurizes hydrogen when the voltage applier applies the voltage. The cathode gas diffusion layer includes a water-repellent carbon fiber layer in a main surface thereof that is on a side of the cathode catalyst layer, and is compressed by the fastener.

A gas diffusion layer, a preparation method therefor, a membrane electrode assembly and a fuel cell. The gas diffusion layer comprises gas diffusion layer substrates (41, 42) and a microporous layer slurry coated on the gas diffusion layer substrates (41, 42). An additive that contains catechol or contains a catechol structure compound is specifically added into the microporous layer slurry, and the additive is specifically dopamine hydrochloride.

A biological cathode and biological battery system for converting carbon feedstock into organic chemicals and producing electrical current is described. The method involves a biological battery system comprising of a reaction vessel and biological cathode electrode. The organic chemicals are processed in a space having at least one anode and at least one cathode with cathode electrode having biologically active material adjacent to at least one layer of the cathode electrode. The material can be a gel, liquid, or solid. This system can be carried out to process organic waste in an environmentally friendly manner.

A solid oxide fuel cell includes a support of which a main component is a metal, a mixed layer that is provided on the support and includes a metallic material and a ceramics material, an intermediate layer that is provided on the mixed layer and includes an electron conductive ceramics material, and an anode that is provided on the intermediate layer and includes an oxygen ion conductive ceramics material and Ni. A ratio of a metal component in the intermediate layer is smaller than a ratio of the metallic material in the mixed layer.

A microbial fuel cell system includes a supply-drain compartment having a supply port and a drain port of an electrolytic solution. The microbial fuel cell system further includes one or more power generation cassettes provided in the supply-drain compartment and each including a microbial fuel cell including: a positive electrode including a first water-repellent layer in contact with a gas phase and a gas diffusion layer attached to the first water-repellent layer; and a negative electrode holding anaerobic microorganisms. The microbial fuel cell system includes one or more purifying cassettes provided in the supply-drain compartment and each including a second water-repellent layer in contact with the gas phase. The power generation cassettes are arranged on the upstream side in a direction in which the electrolytic solution flows from the supply port toward the drain port, and the purifying cassettes are arranged on the downstream side of the power generation cassettes.

To provide electrode catalyst (core-shell catalyst) having an excellent catalyst activity which contributes to lower the cost of the PEFC. The electrode catalyst has catalyst particles supported an a support. The catalyst particle has a core part containing simple Pd and a shell part containing simple Pt. A percentage R.sub.C (atom %) of the carbon of the support and a percentage R.sub.Pd (atom %) of the simple Pd in an analytical region near a surface measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) satisfy the conditions of the following equation (1): 2.15≦[100×R.sub.Pd/(R.sub.Pd+R.sub.C)].

A fuel cell with high productivity, high power generation performance and high durability is described, along with a gas diffusion electrode base material having a microporous layer on one side of an electrically conductive porous base material, where the electrically conductive porous base material contains carbon fiber and resin carbide and has a density of 0.25 to 0.39 g/cm.sup.3 and a pore mode diameter in a range of 30 to 50 μm. The microporous layer contains a carbonaceous powder and a fluororesin and has a surface roughness of 2.0 to 6.0 μm, a porosity of 50 to 95%, and a pore mode diameter of 0.050 to 0.100 μm.

A membrane electrode assembly includes an electrolyte membrane, and a pair of electrode layers which sandwich the electrolyte membrane. The pair of electrode layers include a pair of catalyst layers which sandwich the electrolyte membrane, and a pair of gas diffusion layers disposed on the pair of catalyst layers on opposite sides to the electrolyte membrane. At least one catalyst layer contains a fibrous electric conductor, catalyst particles, a particulate electric conductor, and a proton-conductive resin. The at least one catalyst layer has a first region at a distance of 200 nm or less from the fibrous electric conductor, and a second region at a distance of more than 200 nm from the fibrous electric conductor. Pores are present in the first and second regions. A mode diameter M1 of the pores in the first region and a mode diameter M2 of the pores in the second region satisfy M1<M2.

Disclosed are an electrode for gas generation, a method of preparing the electrode, and a device including the electrode for gas generation. The electrode includes a gas generating electrode layer and a three-dimensional (3D) super-aerophobic layer formed on at least one portion of the gas generating electrode layer and including porous hydrogel.