One consequence of the membrane thinning was the
development of an electrical short, most likely due to the penetration
of carbon fibers through the membrane, which influenced
the linear sweep voltammetry measurements. The 25/25/25 LSV
data given in Table 3 for the baseline MEA includes the decreased
resistance due to the short and though it does not present accurate
values for the hydrogen crossover, it clearly shows increased gas
permeability. This is further supported by IR images that the MEA
developed pinholes, which are visible as intense red spots in Fig. 7a.