Corrosion Mechanism and Control of Electrode Materials for Advanced Electrochemical System

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Advances in technology and industrial processes have greatly increased the production efficiencies and improved the quality of life in human society. However, the continuous consumption of fossil fuels as our main energy source is causing the record level emission of CO2 which is the major portion of the notorious greenhouse gases (GHG), resulting in the adverse impacts on our environment. In response to the negative effects of GHG on global climate, e.g., global warming, the search for renewable and clean energy sources, such as solar, wind and hydro power, and associated technologies has intensified. Solar power gains the popularity due to its easy availability not limited by geographical locations, and the technology for solar power utilization has drawn worldwide research interests in recent years. The dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) is an advanced energy system that generates electricity via illumination of visible light onto photo sensitive material and forms electric circuit by incorporating an electrochemical cell. Although DSSC is one of the prominent third generation solar cells, it has not reached the stage of large scale applications. Traditionally, the electrode made of platinum is used in DSSC system, but their high prices make scaling-up of such system not economically feasible. To reduce the cost, some non-noble materials are considered. Two of the major problems are the performance instability and the degradation of electrocatalytic activities, all caused by the corrosion of low-cost cathode. It is a big challenge to develop new technique to transform these materials for functional improvements to replace the noble metals. The proposed research project aims to meet that challenge and will focus on selecting candidate materials, uncovering their corrosion mechanisms, developing corrosion control strategy and associated techniques to achieve the effectiveness equivalent to that of the noble metals in a more economic way.*This project will also investigate how the electrocatalytic activity related factors such as crystal orientation, surface structure, etc., affect corrosion processes and kinetics. Surface reactivity and corrosion events will be in situ monitored. The feasibility of applying a protective/conductive coating on the cathode and the related physical/chemical compatibilities will be explored.****The outputs of the research proposal will include a scalable DSSC system with a low cost cathode, the comprehensive knowledge of corrosion mechanisms that will fill the knowledge gap in this area, and the guidelines for corrosion control in similar systems in terms of materials selection, new electrode materials design and various surface modification techniques. This research project will contribute to achieving the ultimate goal of renewable and clean energy utilization, protecting our environment and enhancing Canadian competitiveness in the global market.**** *** **