The effects of carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in concentrations close to their respective limits in the Hydrogen Quality Standard ISO 14687-2:2012 on the performance of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) with ultralow-loaded platinum anode catalyst layers (CLs) were investigated. The anodic loadings were 50, 25, and 15 µg/cm2, which represent the current state-of-the-art, target, and stretch target, respectively, for future automotive PEMFCs. Additionally, the effect of shut-down and start-up (SD/SU) processes on recovery from sulfur poisoning was investigated. CO at an ISO concentration of 0.2 ppm caused severe voltage losses of ~40-50% for ultralow-loaded anode CLs. When H2S was in the fuel, these anode CLs exhibited both a nonlinear decrease in tolerance toward sulfur and an improved self-recovery during shut-down and start-up (SD/SU) processes. This observation was hypothesized to have resulted from the decrease in the ratio between CL thickness and geometric cell area, as interfacial effects of water in the pores increasingly impacted the performance of ultrathin CLs. The results indicate that during the next discussions on the Hydrogen Quality Standard, a reduction in the CO limit could be a reasonable alternative considering future PEMFC anodic loadings, while the H2S limit might not require modification.
Keywords: ISO concentration; fuel impurities; platinum electrode; shut-down and start-up process; ultralow-loaded anode catalyst layer.