Electrospinning Equipment for Research| Advances and challenges in micro-porouslayer design for commercialization of protonexchange membrane fuel cel

Professor Liu Yong's Team from Beijing University of Chemical Technology: Research Status and Challenges in Commercialization of Fuel Cell Microporous Layers

As the world accelerates towards a low-carbon economy and sustainable energy systems, hydrogen energy has attracted significant attention as a clean and efficient alternative to fossil fuels. Among various technologies, proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are becoming a core technology in transportation and distributed energy systems due to their high energy conversion efficiency, rapid start-up capability, and zero-emission characteristics. Despite significant progress in PEMFC commercialization in recent years, challenges in material systems, manufacturing processes, and cost control continue to limit their widespread adoption.

To address this issue, Professor Liu Yong's team from Beijing University of Chemical Technology, in collaboration with Dr. Shuang Shuang and Dr. Yang Xia from Beijing Low Carbon Research Institute, Professor Wang Ce from Jilin University, and Professor Hu Ping from Tsinghua University, systematically reviewed the research status and development trends of microporous layers (MPLs), a key component of PEMFCs, from both academic research and industrial practice perspectives. Their findings were published in the authoritative international journal Materials Science & Engineering R (Impact Factor 31.6) under the title "Advances and challenges in micro-porous layer design for commercialization of proton exchange membrane fuel cell".

Figure 1: (a) Schematic of PEMFC composition and working principle, (b) Typical polarization curve and overpotential, (c) ORR process in PEMFC

This comprehensive review examines the structural design, functional mechanisms, performance evaluation methods of MPLs, and the bottlenecks facing large-scale industrial applications. Against the backdrop of global "dual carbon" strategies, the authors emphasize the need to bridge the gap between fundamental research and engineering implementation, laying a solid foundation for large-scale fuel cell deployment by improving the comprehensive performance of MPLs.

Figure 2: Schematic diagram of PEMFC development under global sustainable development strategies

The research team suggests that future MPL development may achieve significant breakthroughs driven by AI-assisted design, green manufacturing processes, and novel material systems. Through effective balance between performance and cost, the technological evolution of MPLs will strongly support PEMFC commercialization and contribute to global energy structure transformation and carbon neutrality goals.

Article link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mser.2025.101028 (Free full-text download available until July 22, 2025)