In an embodiment, a fuel cell includes: a flexible substrate including a first fuel-tolerant material; a fitting on the flexible substrate, the fitting including first openings extending through an outer portion of the fitting; a primer coating on the outer portion of the fitting, the primer coating including a second fuel-tolerant material; first yarns strung through the first openings of the fitting, the first yarns stitched into the flexible substrate; and an encapsulant encapsulating the first yarns, the primer coating, and the outer portion of the fitting, the encapsulant disposed on the flexible substrate, the encapsulant including a third fuel-tolerant material, the third fuel-tolerant material chemically bonded to the second fuel-tolerant material and the first fuel-tolerant material.

Systems, methods, and membranes involving ion exchange membranes are disclosed. In an embodiment of the present invention, an ultrathin laminar layer made of inorganic nanosheets may be coated on one side or both sides of a polymeric anion exchange membrane (AEM), forming a composite AEM. Oxidation stability measurements may indicate that composite AEM provide superior oxidation resistance to exemplary polymeric AEMs and to commercial polymeric AEMs.

Method of preparing a proton exchange membrane (PEM) include mixing a precursor of a perfluorosulfonic acid polymer with a second material to form a precursor material in a reduced humidity zone; extruding the precursor material under reduced humidity to form a filament; 3D printing the PEM with the filament; converting the precursor of the perfluorosulfonic acid polymer to the perfluorosulfonic acid polymer within the PEM; and coating the PEM.

A boron-containing proton-exchange solid support may include a proton-exchange solid support comprising an oxygen atom and a tetravalent boron-based acid group comprising a boron atom covalently bonded to the oxygen atom.

Membrane electrode assembly and method for fabricating the same. In one embodiment, the method may involve providing an anion exchange membrane and then applying catalyst coatings to opposing surfaces of the anion exchange membrane, whereby a membrane electrode assembly may be formed. Next, the membrane electrode assembly may be subjected to a two-part treatment process. In a first part of the process, the membrane electrode assembly may be swelled, at room temperature, by exposure to an aqueous ethanol solution vapor while being retained under tension in a frame. The aqueous ethanol solution vapor may be, for example, 80:20 by volume ethanol and water. In a second part of the process, the swollen membrane electrode assembly may be removed from the frame and then pressed, at room temperature, between two plates. A layer of rubber and a layer polytetrafluoroethylene may be placed between each plate and the swollen membrane electrolyte assembly.

An electrolyte membrane and method for generating the membrane provide a resistance as low as possible to minimize ohmic losses. The membrane has a low permeability for redox-active species. If redox-active species still cross the membrane, this transport is balanced during charge and discharge preventing a net vanadium flux and associated capacity fading. The membrane is mechanically robust, chemically stable in electrolyte solution, and low cost. A family of ion exchange membranes including a bilayer architecture achieves these requirements. The bilayer membrane includes two polymers, i) a polymer including N-heterocycles with electron lone pairs acting as proton acceptor sites and ii) a mechanically robust polymer acting as a support, which can be a dense cation exchange membrane or porous support layer. This bilayer architecture permits a very thin polymer film on a supporting polymer to minimize ohmic resistance and tune electrolyte transport properties of the membrane.

The present invention relates to an ion exchange membrane and an energy storage device comprising same, wherein the ion exchange membrane comprises: a polymer membrane comprising an ion conductor; and any one ion permeation inhibiting additive selected from the group consisting of a columnar porous metal oxide, crown ether, a nitrogen-containing cyclic compound, and a mixture thereof. In the ion exchange membrane, the size of a channel through which ions permeate is limited or an additive capable of trapping ions is introduced into an ion movement path, so that the permeation of ions is prevented, leading to the improvement of voltage efficiency and the prevention of deterioration.

A new polyelectrolyte multilayer coated proton-exchange membrane for electrolysis and fuel cell applications has been developed for electrolysis and fuel cell applications. The polyelectrolyte multilayer coated proton-exchange membrane comprises: a cation exchange membrane, and a polyelectrolyte multilayer coating on one or both surfaces of the cation exchange membrane. The polyelectrolyte multilayer coating comprises alternating layers of a polycation polymer and a polyanion polymer. The polycation polymer layer is deposited on and is in contact with the cation exchange membrane. The top layer of the polyelectrolyte multilayer coating can be either a polycation polymer layer or a polyanion polymer layer.

Stabilized surfactant-based membranes and methods of manufacture thereof. Membranes comprising a stabilized surfactant mesostructure on a porous support may be used for various separations, including reverse osmosis and forward osmosis. The membranes are stabilized after evaporation of solvents; in some embodiments no removal of the surfactant is required. The surfactant solution may or may not comprise a hydrophilic compound such as an acid or base. The surface of the porous support is preferably modified prior to formation of the stabilized surfactant mesostructure. The membrane is sufficiently stable to be utilized in commercial separations devices such as spiral wound modules. Also a stabilized surfactant mesostructure coating for a porous material and filters made therefrom. The coating can simultaneously improve both the permeability and the filtration characteristics of the porous material.

The present specification relates to a polymer electrolyte membrane, an electrochemical battery including the polymer electrolyte membrane, an electrochemical battery module including the electrochemical battery, a flow battery including the polymer electrolyte membrane, a method for manufacturing a polymer electrolyte membrane, and an electrolyte solution for a flow battery.