Pre-oxidized and nitrided stainless steel alloy foil for proton exchange membrane fuel cell bipolar plates: Part 1. Corrosion, interfacial contact resistance, and surface structure

Thermal (gas) nitridation of stainless steel alloys can yield low interfacial contact resistance (ICR), electrically conductive and corrosion-resistant nitride containing surface layers (Cr₂N, CrN, TiN, V₂N, VN, etc.) of interest for fuel cells, batteries, and sensors. This paper presents results of scale-up studies to determine the feasibility of extending the nitridation approach to thin 0.1 mm stainless steel alloy foils for proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) bipolar plates. Developmental Fe-20Cr-4V alloy and type 2205 stainless steel foils were treated by pre-oxidation and nitridation to form low-ICR, corrosion-resistant surfaces. As-treated Fe-20Cr-4V foil exhibited target (low) ICR values, whereas 2205 foil suffered from run-to-run variation in ICR values, ranging up to 2× the target value. Pre-oxidized and nitrided surface structure examination revealed surface-through-layer-thickness V-nitride particles for the treated Fe-20Cr-4V, but near continuous chromia for treated 2205 stainless steel, which was linked to the variation in ICR values. Promising corrosion resistance was observed under simulated aggressive PEMFC anode- and cathode-side bipolar plate conditions for both materials, although ICR values were observed to increase. The implications of these findings for stamped bipolar plate foils are discussed.