The most expensive component of a fuel cell is the membrane electrode assembly (MEA), which consists of an ionomer membrane\ncoated with catalyst material. Best-performing MEAs are currently fabricated by depositing and drying liquid catalyst ink on the\nmembrane; however, this process is limited to individual preparation by hand due to the membrane�s rapid water absorption that\nleads to shape deformation and coating defects.Acontinuous coating line can reduce the cost and time needed to fabricate the MEA,\nincentivizing the commercialization and widespread adoption of fuel cells. A pilot-scale membrane coating line was designed for\nsuch a task and is described in this paper. Accurate process control is necessary to prevent manufacturing defects from occurring\nin the coating line. A linear-quadratic-Gaussian (LQG) controller was developed based on a physics-based model of the coating\nprocess to optimally control the temperature and humidity of the drying zones. The process controller was implemented in the\npilot-scale coating line proving effective in preventing defects.
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