Hydrogen, Fuel Cell & Energy Storage

Hydrogen, Fuel Cell & Energy Storage

Evaluation of Bipolar Plate Bonding Adhesives with the Aim of Increasing PEM Fuel Cell Power Density

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Mohammad Mahdi Barzegari 1
Mojtaba Ghadimi 1
Seyed Mostafa Seyyedi 2
Hamid Hassanzadeh Afrouzi 2
1 Northern Research Center for Science and Technology, Malek-Ashtar University of Technology, Iran
2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Technical and Vocational University (TVU), Tehran, Iran
10.22104/hfe.2026.7891.1382
Abstract
One of the strategies to increase the power density of fuel cells is reducing the thickness of composite bipolar plates. However, considering the brittle nature of these plates, a reduction in thickness may result in fracture under applied loading. The use of adhesives for sealing, instead of elastomeric gaskets on the cooling side of bipolar plates, enables bonding of the anode and cathode plates together, thereby improving mechanical strength. Consequently, applying adhesives can significantly enhance the power density of the fuel cell. In this study, the performance of structural (epoxy–phenolic) and non-structural (fluorinated vinyl ester) adhesives was evaluated under fuel cell operating conditions. Essential properties such as adhesion strength, effective sealing, ease of preparation and application, thermal stability, and chemical resistance in the acidic fuel cell environment were investigated. The results revealed that epoxy–phenolic adhesives, due to their high shear strength, negligible weight loss, dense cross-linked structure, and the presence of phenolic rings, are more suitable for structural applications. In contrast, fluorinated vinyl ester adhesives exhibited zero weight loss under the same conditions and excellent chemical resistance, but lower mechanical strength. Specifically, EP-Ph10 exhibited a lap shear strength of 10.2 MPa, while VES-PFO5 showed 8.4 MPa. Chemical resistance tests indicated <0.5% weight loss for EP-P, EP-Ph5, EP-Ph10, VES, and VES-PFO5, whereas EP-D showed approximately 2.0% weight loss in H2SO4 and ∼3.0% in HF after 30 days.
Keywords
Fuel cell
Structural epoxy-phenolic adhesives
Fluorinated vinyl ester
Chemical resistance
Thermal stability
Subjects
[1] Kim M, Yu HN, Lim JW. Bipolar plates made of plain weave carbon/epoxy composite for proton exchange membrane fuel cell. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy. 2012;37(5):4300-8.
[2] Kim M. Development of the anode bipolar plate/membrane assembly unit for air breathing PEMFC stack using silicone adhesive bonding. Journal of Power Sources. 2016;315:86-95.
[3] Rzeczkowski P, Krause B, Pötschke P. Characterization of highly filled PP/graphite composites for adhesive joining in fuel cell applications. Polymers. 2019;11(3):462.
[4] Bhlapibul S, Pruksathorn K. Preparation of graphite composite bipolar plate for PEMFC. Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering. 2008;25(5):1226-31.
[5] Müller A, Kauranen P, Von Ganski A, Hell B. Injection moulding of graphite composite bipolar plates. Journal of Power Sources. 2006;154(2):467-71.
[6] Jeong KI, Oh J, Song SA, Lee D, Kim SS. A review of composite bipolar plates in proton exchange membrane fuel cells: Electrical properties and gas permeability. Composite Structures. 2021;262:113617.
[7] Kakati BK, Sathiyamoorthy D, Verma A. Electrochemical and mechanical behavior of carbon composite bipolar plate for fuel cell. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy. 2010;35(9):4185-94.
[8] Jie Z, Yan-wen Z, Jun HE. Influence of graphite particle size and its shape on performance of carbon composite bipolar plate. Journal of Zhejiang University-SCIENCE A. 2005;6(10):1080-3.
[9] Ishai O, Rosenthal H, Sela N, Drukker E. Effect of selective adhesive interleaving on interlaminar fracture toughness of graphite/epoxy composite laminates. Composites. 1988;19(1):49-54.
[10] Hsiao KT, Alms J, Advani SG. Use of epoxy/multiwalled carbon nanotubes as adhesives to join graphite fibre reinforced polymer composites. Nanotechnology. 2003;14(7):791.
[11] Stammen E, Brokamp S, Weber M, Heinzel A, Dilger K. Simplified construction of fuel cells. Adhesion Adhesives & Sealants. 2015;12(1):30-5.
[12] Wang JG, Guo QG, Liu L, Song JR. Study on the microstructural evolution of high temperature adhesives for graphite bonding. Carbon. 2002;40(13):2447-52.
[13] Wang J, Jiang N, Guo Q, Liu L, Song J. Study on the structural evolution of modified phenol–formaldehyde resin adhesive for the high-temperature bonding of graphite. Journal of Nuclear Materials. 2006;348(1-2):108-13.
[14] Rzeczkowski P, Lucia M, Müller A, Facklam M, Cohnen A, Schäfer P, et al. Development of joining methods for highly filled graphite/PP composite based bipolar plates for fuel cells: adhesive joining and welding. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. vol. 2139. AIP Publishing LLC; 2019. p. 110003.
[15] Blunk RH, Abd Elhamid MH, Lisi DJ, Mikhail YM, Budinski MK. Adhesive bonds for metalic bipolar plates; 2005. U.S. Patent 6,942,941.
[16] Farrington S. Assembling bipolar plates for fuel cells using microencapsulated adhesives; 2015. U.S. Patent 9,105,883.
[17] Sekine S. Adhesive material for fuel cell and fuel cell; 2015. U.S. Patent 9,088,026.
Hydrogen, Fuel Cell & Energy Storage
Volume 13, Issue 3
Summer 2026
Pages 267-278