对比了碳基涂层改性金属极板、未涂覆的金属极板和传统石墨极板性能的优劣，阐述了碳基涂层在优化金属极板导电耐蚀性能方面取得的最新成果，以及在质子交换膜燃料电池（Proton exchange membrane fuel cells, PEMFCs）环境长期运行后，碳基涂层出现性能失效及寿命受限等问题。通过分析影响碳基涂层性能的因素，指出由于非晶碳材料设计、微观结构等对其性能影响规律的系统化研究不足，导致非晶碳涂层/金属极板损伤及退化机理不明确。重点阐述了国内外关于PEMFCs金属极板改性碳基涂层材料技术的研究进展，包括调控本征碳基涂层（a-C）微观形貌优化涂层性能；采用理论计算与实验相结合的方法制备金属掺杂碳基涂层(a-C: Me)，解决涂层与特定金属基体间粘附性差、压应力高等问题；设计多层结构碳基涂层以减少贯穿性缺陷。探讨了几类涂层失效机制，并对金属极板改性用碳基涂层技术进行了展望。

In this work, the performances of bare metallic plate, traditional graphite plate and metallic bipolar plate modified with carbon-based coating used in the proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) were compared; the latest achievements of carbon-based coatings in improving the conductivity and corrosion resistance of metallic bipolar plates were reviewed; and issues such as performance degradation and limited life of carbon-based coatings were discussed, especially after long-term operation in PEMFCs environment. By analyzing the factors that affect the performance of carbon-based coatings, it was found that systematic researches on the relationship between microstructure of carbon-based coating and its performance were insufficient, leading to an unclear damage and degradation mechanism of a-C carbon coating/ metallic bipolar plate. The research progress of modified carbon-based coating materials for PEMFCs metal plates at home and abroad was mainly discussed, including improving the coating performance by adjusting the microstructure of carbon-based coatings (a-C); preparing metal-doped carbon coating (a-C:Me) by combing theoretical calculation with practice; solving the poor adhesion, high pressure stress and other issues between coating and special metallic matrix, design multi-layer structures to reduce penetrability defects. The failure mechanism of several kinds of coatings was discussed and the development trend of carbon-based coating technology for metallic plate modification was prospected.