This study investigated a developed process for producing a composite bipolar plate having excellent conductivity by using coal tar pitch and phenol resin as binders. We used a pressing method to prepare a compact of graphite powder mixed with binders. Resistivity of the impregnated compact was observed as heat treatment temperature was increased. It was observed that pore sizes of the GCTP samples increased as the heat treatment temperature increased. There was not a great difference between the flexural strengths of GCTP-IM and CPR-IM as the heat treatment temperature was increased. The resistivity of GPR700-IM, heat treated at 700℃ using phenolic resin as a binder, was 4829 μΩ·cm which was best value in this study. In addition, it is expected that with the appropriate selection of carbon powder and further optimization of process we can produce a composite bipolar plate which has excellent properties.
Premixes treated with a binder, such as in the FLOMET process, exhibit better flow, reduced dusting and segregation and improved productivity and part consistency compared to conventional premixes. The binder treatment is highly suitable for high performance P/M applications which often require premixes containing very fine alloying additives and excellent die filling characteristics. With this process, various binders and lubricants can be utilized in order to make premixes with unique properties. In this paper, the characteristics and performances of bonded premixes are reported.
The aim of this study was to evaluate various methods for producing high-quality fuel pellets using rape stalk (RS), which is an agricultural waste. RS was used as a raw material for pellets production after three treatments [distilled water (DW), sulfuric acid (AC), sodium hydroxide (AK) solutions]. Then, fabricated pellets with two binder additions [ rapeseed flour (RF), coffee waste (CW)] were examined to evaluate their fuel qualities. Results showed that binder additions (RF, CW) improve the durability and higher heating value for RS-based pellets. The addition of CW greatly decreased ash content for fabricated pellets. Also, all immersion treatments improved all fuel qualities compared to non-immersed treatment. Particularly, DW-immersion had favorable influences on the increases of higher heating value and durability. Two immersion treatments (AC, AK solution) positively influenced the improvements of bulk density and ash content for fabricated pellets. However, they were required to rinse the residue existed on the RS, and consequently the use of DW-immersion might be the most beneficial way to improve the qualities of RS-based pellets. All qualities of the pellets were acceptable for the European agropellet standards (A- or B-grade). Hence, RS can be used as a raw material for the production of agropellets while outdoor exposure of RS or mixing RS with CW or wood sawdust might be help to better agropellets qualities.