This paper reports on a novel composite material for the bipolar plates of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). In general, the materials used to fabricate PEMFC bipolar plates must be low-cost, easily fabricated, light, strong, mechanically stable and have a low surface contact resistance. His study fabricates bipolar plates using a composite material comprising Nylon-6 and S316L stainless steel alloy fibers. The PEMFC plates were fabricated via an injection molding process, which yielded better production rates than coating or treating metal plates with a suitable surface material. It is shown that the developed composite material has a suitable combination of properties and processability for PEMFC bipolar plate applications. Specifically, the chemical and electrochemical properties of the plates were found to be stable, and the plates demonstrated good anti-corrosion characteristics, resulting in an enhanced electrical conductivity, a stable cell performance and an extended cell life. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.