Composite fiber structures for catalysts and electrodes

We have recently envisioned a process wherein fibers of various metals in the 0.5 to 15 micron diameter range are slurried in concert with cellulose fibers and various other materials in the form of particulates and/or fibers. The resulting slurry is cast via a wet-lay process into a sheet and dried to produce a free-standing sheet of 'composite paper.' When the 'preform' sheet is sintered in hydrogen, the bulk of the cellulose is removed with the secondary fibers and/or particulates being entrapped by the sinter-locked network provided by the metal fibers. The resulting material is unique, in that it allows the intimate contacting and combination of heretofore mutually exclusive materials and properties. Moreover, due to the ease of paper manufacture and processing, the resulting materials are relatively inexpensive and can be fabricated into a wide range of three-dimensional structures. Also, because cellulose is both a binder and a pore-former, structures combining high levels of active surface area and high void volume (i.e., low pressure drop) can be prepared as freestanding flow through monoliths

High surface area, low weight composite nickel fiber electrodes

The energy density and power density of light weight aerospace batteries utilizing the nickel oxide electrode are often limited by the microstructures of both the collector and the resulting active deposit in/on the collector. Heretofore, these two microstructures were intimately linked to one another by the materials used to prepare the collector grid as well as the methods and conditions used to deposit the active material. Significant weight and performance advantages were demonstrated by Britton and Reid at NASA-LeRC using FIBREX nickel mats of ca. 28-32 microns diameter. Work in our laboratory investigated the potential performance advantages offered by nickel fiber composite electrodes containing a mixture of fibers as small as 2 microns diameter (Available from Memtec America Corporation). These electrode collectors possess in excess of an order of magnitude more surface area per gram of collector than FIBREX nickel. The increase in surface area of the collector roughly translates into an order of magnitude thinner layer of active material. Performance data and advantages of these thin layer structures are presented. Attributes and limitations of their electrode microstructure to independently control void volume, pore structure of the Ni(OH)2 deposition, and resulting electrical properties are discussed

Electrochemical and Integrated Process Opportunities for On-Site/On-Demand Generation of Chlorine Dioxide - Final Report - 08/02/1996 - 08/01/1999

Due to continued evidence of environmental harm from elemental chlorine bleaching, the nation's paper industry continues to search for cost effective alternative bleaching. A practical and cost effective bleaching alternative is chlorine dioxide manufactured entirely from sodium chlorate. Sodium chlorate is produced by the electrolysis of brine in an undivided cell with steel plate cathodes and dimensionally stable anodes. Although the overpotential at the anode is only 50 mV, the cathodic overpotential is 940 mV. Thus, nearly one volt of electricity is wasted in driving hydrogen evolution at the cathode. Auburn University's Center for Microfibrous Materials Manufacturing has demonstrated that high performance, three dimensional, microfibrous electrodes can improve the performance of capacitors, batteries, hybrid power cells, and electrolysis electrodes in a variety of applications. The goal of this research was to apply this technology to a chlorate cell's cathode and reduce the overpotential between 200 and 400 mV. An economic analysis of the industry has shown that for every 100 mV reduction in overpotential, $100 per square meter of electrode can be saved annually. Due to their enhanced surface area over plates, corrosion of microfibrous electrodes is a major issue in this research. Samples based on chromium protection (i.e. stainless steel) have proved unfeasible for chlorate application. However, samples based on stainless steel and nickel show dramatic performance improvements over industry status quo in chlor-alkali application. Building microfibrous electrodes on a titanium base protected with a silver coating alleviates the corrosion problem and provides 100 mV or more of overpotential reduction. Further reduction is realized by impregnating silver-titanium microfibrous mesh with a PVDF binder and dispersed platinum on activated carbon. The resulting electrodes are mechanically sound, active towards hydrogen evolution, and hold promise for practical industry use

Improvement of Commercial Gas Mask Canisters Using Adsorbents Enhanced by Sintered Microfibrous Networks

We used a U.S.A. military respirator test with dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) to compare a commercial gas mask canister to composite bed designs. These comparisons were conducted at a constant volume of 320 cm³, equal to the total volume of the adsorbent and HEPA elements in a commercial gas mask canister, and fifty percent improvement in performance rating was experimentally demonstrated. In a second comparison, a 3-fold increase in gas life of a commercial canister with a 1.5 cm deep bed of activated carbon was experimentally demonstrated by adding a backup layer to a fully packaged commercial canister. An equation describing irreversible physical adsorption occurring in a two-layer bed and an iterative inverse solution is presented for design of composite beds utilizing polishing sorbents. An overall adsorption rate constant model is presented to predict adsorbent bed performance. A generally applicable axial dispersion model was developed for application to adsorbents enhanced by sintered microfibrous networks

Carbon Nanofiber Synthesis within 3-Dimensional Sintered Nickel Microfibrous Matrices: Optimization of Synthesis Conditions

This study focuses on the process of optimization for carbon nanofiber synthesis at the exterior and the interior of 3-dimensional sintered nickel microfibrous networks. Synthesis of carbon nanofibers (CNF) by catalytic decomposition of acetylene (ethyne) was conducted at atmospheric pressure and short reaction times (10 min). Two factors evaluated during the study were (a) CNF quality (observed by SEM and Raman spectroscopy) and (b) rate of reaction (gravimetrically measured carbon yield). Independent optimization variables included redox faceting pretreatment of nickel, synthesis temperature, and gas composition. Faceting resulted in an 8-fold increase in the carbon yield compared to an untreated substrate. Synthesis with varying levels of hydrogen maximized the carbon yield (9.31 mg C/cm2 catalyst). The quality of CNF was enhanced via a reduction in amorphous carbon that resulted from the addition of 20% ammonia. Optimized growth conditions that led to high rates of CNF deposition preferentially deposited this carbon at the exterior layer of the nickel microfibrous networks (570°C, 78% H2, 20% NH3, 2% C2H2, faceted Ni.). CNF growth within the 3-dimensional nickel networks was accomplished at the conditions selected to lower the gravimetric reaction rate (470°C, 10% H2, 88% N2, 2% C2H2, nonfaceted Ni)