Studies on modified anode polymer hydrogen sensor

An improved polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell based amperometric hydrogen sensor that operates at room temperature has been developed. The electrolyte used in the sensor is PVA/H3PO4 blend, which is a proton conducting solid polymer electrolyte. A blend of palladium and platinum coated on the membrane is used as anode and platinum as cathode. The sensor functions as a fuel cell, H2/Pd-Pt//PVA-H3PO4//Pt/O2, and the short circuit current is found to be linearly related to the hydrogen concentration. The present study aims at investigating the dependence of sensor behaviour on the anode composition.