Date:	March 2, 1998

Objectives:

Outline procedure for the construction of the electrolyzer.

Procedure Utilized:

Literature Search

Environment:

Temperature-	NA

Barometer-	NA

Relative Humidity-	NA

Results & Conclusions:

Procedure for cleaning and preparing the electrolyzer.

A carbon electrode will be used as a counter electrode for the anode measurement.

Procedure

The anode and cathode will be prepared systematically and of the same materials, by using a Ti mesh of approximately (150 x 150), 0.1 mm diameter), and a solution dihydrogen hexachloroplatnic acid.

a.	To make the mesh uniform it will be pressed at 200 kg cm-3 and cut into 2.24 cm-2, this will give a total surface area of approximately 5 cm-2

b.	Clean in acetone to remove any organic impurities.

c.	Clean in 1 molar hydrochloric acid for a period of 30 minutes at 60°C.

d.	Place the 1g dihydrogenchloroplatnic acid lump into a solution of 10% hydrochloric acid and dilute to approximately 1 liter.

e.	Remove the Ti mesh from the hydrochloric bath, weigh it, and connect the positive end of a power supply to the mesh and then connect the negative end of the other piece of Ti and submerse in the solution.

f.	The platinum will be deposited gavanostatically by passing a current of approximately 1 Amp for a period of 3 hours.

g.	The terminals will be changed, i.e. the mesh connected to the positive terminal will be moved to the negative terminal and the negative mesh will be moved to the positive terminal.

h.	After the platinum has been deposited, an approximation of the amount will be made based on the weight of the electrodes after the deposition. Then the electrodes will be treated with the electro catalyst.

i.	The electro catalyst will be a ,5% by weight, Nafion solution that will be diluted with isopropanol to approximately 2% solution.

j.	The electrodes will then be placed in the solution and heated gently with an isopropanol burner. (The Nafion solution is sintered at a temperature of 100°C.)

k.	The process will be continued until the electrode has accumulated an approximate weight of 0.8 mg cm-2.

l.	The electrodes will then be cleaned in a solution of 3% hydrogen peroxide for a period of 30 min.

m.	The electrodes will then be rinsed in a solution of distilled water for a period of 60 min.

n.	The membrane material is cleaned according to standard procedure.

i.	Place the Nafion membrane in 3% H2O2 and boil solution for a period of 30 min.

ii.	Place the membrane in milipore water and boil for a period of 60 min.

iii.	Move the membrane to a 0.05 molar solution of Sulfuric acid and boil for a period of 30 min.

iv.	Place the membrane in milipore water and boil for a period of 60 min.

v.	Place the membrane in milipore water and boil for a period of 30 min prior to pressing.

o.	The electrode are then pressed to the membrane for a period of 90 seconds at 1 metric ton and 135°C.

p.	The assembly is then placed into the test fixture.

*Please note that the electrode do not need to be pressed to the membrane as the mechanical pressure of the fixture alone is capable of holding the required pressure.