Apparatus for manufacturing electrolyte membrane and methods for manufacturing electrolyte membrane using the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2019356007-A1
Application number	US-201816194535-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Nov 19, 2018
Priority date	May 15, 2018
Publication date	Nov 21, 2019
Grant date	—

Abstract

Disclosed are an apparatus for manufacturing an electrolyte membrane and a method for manufacturing an electrolyte membrane using the same, which may prevent discoloration of the electrolyte membrane through a controlled drying process of the electrolyte membrane. The electrolyte membrane manufactured by the method of the present invention may not be discolored and performance and durability of fuel cells using the electrolyte membrane may be improved due to uniform drying of the electrolyte membrane during the manufacturing. For example, competitively simultaneous evaporation of solvents in an ionomer composition in the drying process may be prevented.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method of manufacturing an electrolyte membrane comprising:
dispersing an ionomer in a solvent admixture to prepare an ionomer composition; coating a substrate with the ionomer composition to form a coating layer; and drying the coating layer-formed substrate in the presence of a gas, wherein, the gas comprises a first solvent and the solvent admixture comprises the first solvent and one or more solvents different from the first solvent.

2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the ionomer comprises one or more polymers selected from the group consisting of a fluoro-based polymer, a perfluorosulfone-based polymer, a benzimidazole-based polymer, a polyimide-based polymer, a polyetherimide-based polymer, a polyphenylene sulfide-based polymer, a polysulfone-based polymer, a polyethersulfone-based polymer, a polyetherketone-based polymer, a polyether-etherketone-based polymer, a polyphenylquinoxaline-based polymer and a polystyrene-based polymer.

3 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the solvent admixture comprises water and one or more selected from the group consisting of ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, n-propylalcohol, butylalcohol, methanol, dimethylformamide, dimethylacetamide, dimethyl sulfoxide, N-methylpyrrolidone, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, methylethylketone, tetramethylurea, trimethyl phosphate, butyrolactone, isophorone, carbitol acetate, methyl isobutyl ketone, N-butylacetate, cyclohexanone, diacetone alcohol, diisobutyl ketone, ethyl acetoacetate, glycol ether, propylene carbonate, ethylene carbonate, dimethyl carbonate and diethyl carbonate.

4 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the substrate comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polyvinylidene fluoride, polyvinyl difluoroethylene, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, polyester, polyacetal, polyamide, polycarbonate, polyimide, polyetherketone, polyetheretherketone, polyethylene ether nitrile, polyethylene naphthalene, polyethersulfone, polyphenylene oxide, polyphenylene sulfide, polytetrafluoroethylene, a tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene copolymer, and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer.

5 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
disposing a porous support into the formed coating layer; and coating the disposed porous support with the ionomer composition.

6 . The method according to claim 5 , wherein the porous support comprises expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE).

7 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein, during the drying, the one or more solvents different from the first solvent are evaporated earlier than the first solvent.

8 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein, during the drying, the gas is present in a saturated state.

9 . The method according to claim 7 , wherein the one or more solvents different from the first solvent comprises an alcohol-based solvent.

10 . The method according to claim 7 , wherein the first solvent is water.

11 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the drying is performed for about 5 minutes to 30 minutes.

12 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the drying is performed in a dryer and, relative humidity (RH) in the dryer is about 30% or greater.

13 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein a temperature of the drying is maintained at less than a boiling point of a solvent having the lowest boiling point in the solvent admixture.

14 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
after the drying, heat-treating the coating layer-formed substrate at a temperature of about 140 to 200° C.

15 . The method according to claim 14 , wherein the heat-treating is performed for about 5 minutes to 30 minutes.

16 . An apparatus for manufacturing an electrolyte membrane comprising:
an unwinding roll configured to supply a substrate; a coater configured to coat the substrate supplied from the unwinding roll with an ionomer composition; a dryer configured to dry the substrate coated with the ionomer composition by the coater; a heater configured to heat-treat the substrate having passed through the dryer to manufacture an electrolyte membrane; and a rewinding roll configured to wind the electrolyte membrane having passed through the heater.

17 . The apparatus according to claim 16 , wherein the coater performs coating by one or more coating methods selected from knife coating, gravure coating, micro-gravure coating, slot die coating, roll coating, spin coating, spray coating, dip coating, flow coating, doctor blade, dispensing, inkjet printing, offset printing, screen printing, pad printing, gravure printing, flexography printing, and stencil printing.

18 . An electrolyte membrane manufactured by a method of claim 1 .

19 . A fuel cell comprising an electrolyte membrane of claim 18 .

20 . A vehicle comprising a fuel cell of claim 19 .

Assignees

• Hyundai Motor Co Ltd
• Kia Motors Corp

Inventors

• Kim Yong Min
• Lee Ju Young
• Yu Ha Yeong

Classifications

• H01M8/1081 Primary

  starting from solutions, dispersions or slurries exclusively of polymers · CPC title

• H01M2008/1095

  Fuel cells with polymeric electrolytes · CPC title

• H01M2250/20

  Fuel cells in motive systems, e.g. vehicle, ship, plane · CPC title

• H01M8/109

  thermal other than drying, e.g. sintering · CPC title

• H01M8/1086

  After-treatment of the membrane other than by polymerisation · CPC title