Method of treating a material to achieve sufficient hydrophilicity for making hydrophilic articles

1. A method of making an article, comprising the steps of:

forming the article of a material comprising graphite particles having basal surfaces, at least a portion of the article being porous,

coating at least the basal surfaces of the graphite particles of at least the porous portion of the article with a non-metallic oxygenated element comprising a silicate;

controlling a rate of a breakdown of the oxygenated element to leave a corresponding elemental oxide on the basal surfaces of the graphite particles of the porous portion; and

wherein the article comprises a fuel cell transport plate or a fuel cell gas diffusion layer.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the breakdown comprises decomposition.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the breakdown comprises precipitation.

4. The method of claim 1 , comprising mixing the oxygenated element with a solvent to control the rate of breakdown.

5. The method of claim 4 , comprising using the solvent to slow a rate of at least one of decomposition or precipitation.

6. The method of claim 4 , comprising combining the oxygenated element and the solvent to establish a solution; and

impregnating the material with at least some of the solution.

7. The method of claim 6 , comprising subjecting the material in the solution to vacuum impregnation.

8. The method of claim 6 , comprising

subsequently drying the article;

subsequently placing the dried article into a second solution comprising water and a solvent; and

subsequently heating the article.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the second solution comprises deionized water and denatured ethanol.

10. The method of claim 8 , comprising heating the article at a temperature greater than 100° C.

11. The method of claim 4 , comprising

heating a mixture of the oxygenated element, the material and the solvent to a first temperature;

subsequently heating the heated mixture to a second, higher temperature; and

subsequently allowing the mixture to cool to room temperature.

12. The method of claim 11 , comprising

increasing a temperature of a device used to heat the mixture at a controlled rate to reach the first temperature; and

increasing the temperature from the first temperature to the second, higher temperature at approximately the same controlled rate.

13. The method of claim 11 , comprising

maintaining the heated mixture at the first temperature for a first amount of time; and

maintaining the heated mixture at the second temperature for a second amount of time that is approximately half as long as the first amount of time.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second, higher temperature is greater than 300° C.

15. The method of claim 4 , wherein the solvent comprises at least one of an ethyl solution, an ethanol solution or a denatured ethanol.

16. A method of treating a material that comprises carbon to render at least some surfaces of the material hydrophilic, comprising the steps of:

forming a fuel cell component of the material, at least a portion of the fuel cell component being porous, the porous portion including graphite particles having a basal surface;

coating at least the basal surface of the graphite particles of the porous portion with an oxygenated element;

controlling a rate of breakdown of the oxygenated element to leave a corresponding elemental oxide on the basal surfaces of the porous portion;

mixing the oxygenated element with a solvent to control the rate of breakdown;

heating a mixture of the oxygenated element, the material and the solvent to a first temperature;

increasing a temperature of a device used to heat the mixture at a controlled rate to reach the first temperature;

subsequently heating the heated mixture to a second, higher temperature;

increasing the temperature from the first temperature to the second, higher temperature at approximately the same controlled rate; and

subsequently allowing the mixture to cool to room temperature.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the fuel cell component comprises a transport plate or a gas diffusion layer.