Electrochemical cell for wastewater treatment with improved electrical protection

An electrochemical cell for wastewater treatment comprising:

• a. a solid polymer electrolyte membrane;
• b. an anode catalyst layer adjacent to a first side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and a cathode catalyst layer adjacent to a second side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, opposite to the first side;
• c. a first open pore mesh adjacent to the anode catalyst layer and a second open pore mesh adjacent to the cathode catalyst layer;
• d. a first compression frame, adjacent to the first open pore mesh and a second compression frame, adjacent to the second open pore mesh, each of the compression frames having compression arms spread within the area delimited by the perimeter of the frame, the compression arms being connected to each other at connection sites;
• e. fasteners which protrude through holes provided in the compression arms of the first and second compression frames at the connection sites, through holes provided in the first and second open pore meshes and through the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and the anode and cathode catalyst layers,
• wherein the fasteners provide the force to compress the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, the catalyst layers and the open pore meshes between the two compression frames, wherein each of the first open pore mesh and the second open pore mesh comprises a flat surface and an embossed surface which is raised from the flat surface, wherein the solid polymer electrolyte membrane is provided with holes to allow the penetration of the fasteners, and wherein the holes in the open pore meshes are bigger than the holes in the solid polymer membrane and/or the holes in the compression arms.

An electrochemical cell for wastewater treatment comprising:

• a. a solid polymer electrolyte membrane;
• b. an anode catalyst layer adjacent to a first side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and a cathode catalyst layer adjacent to a second side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, opposite to the first side;
• c. a first open pore mesh adjacent to the anode catalyst layer and a second open pore mesh adjacent to the cathode catalyst layer;
• d. a first compression frame, adjacent to the first open pore mesh and a second compression frame, adjacent to the second open pore mesh, each of the compression frames having compression arms spread within the area delimited by the perimeter of the frame, the compression arms being connected to each other at connection sites;
• e. fasteners which protrude through holes provided in the compression arms of the first and second compression frames at the connection sites, through holes provided in the first and second open pore meshes and through the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and the anode and cathode catalyst layers,
• wherein the fasteners provide the force to compress the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, the catalyst layers and the open pore meshes between the two compression frames, wherein each of the first open pore mesh and the second open pore mesh comprises a flat surface and an embossed surface which is raised from the flat surface, and wherein the embossed surface is dimensioned based on the elasticity of the material of the first and second open pore meshes, on a compression force applied by the fasteners to the assembly and on the thickness of the first and second open pore meshes.

An electrochemical cell for wastewater treatment comprising:

• a. a solid polymer electrolyte membrane;
• b. an anode catalyst layer adjacent to a first side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and a cathode catalyst layer adjacent to a second side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, opposite to the first side;
• c. a first open pore mesh adjacent to the anode catalyst layer and a second open pore mesh adjacent to the cathode catalyst layer;
• d. a first compression frame, adjacent to the first open pore mesh and a second compression frame, adjacent to the second open pore mesh, each of the compression frames having compression arms spread within the area delimited by the perimeter of the frame, the compression arms being connected to each other at connection sites;
• e. fasteners which protrude through holes provided in the compression arms of the first and second compression frames at the connection sites, through holes provided in the first and second open pore meshes and through the solid polymer electrolyte membrane and the anode and cathode catalyst layers,
• wherein the fasteners provide the force to compress the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, the catalyst layers and the open pore meshes between the two compression frames, wherein each of the first open pore mesh and the second open pore mesh comprises a flat surface and an embossed surface which is raised from the flat surface, and wherein the first compression frame comprises a first peripheral area on one side of the frame and the second compression frame comprises a second peripheral area on one side of the frame, each peripheral area being provided with at least one hole and wherein, in the assembled electrochemical cell, the first peripheral area extends in an opposite direction from the second peripheral area, and each peripheral area extends beyond the opposing compression frame.