A domain decomposition method for a two-phase transport model of polymer electrolyte fuel cell containing micro-porous layer

2012 ◽  
Vol 91 (10) ◽  
pp. 1115-1136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pengtao Sun
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Domain Decomposition ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Porous Layer ◽  
Decomposition Method ◽  
Transport Model ◽  
Domain Decomposition Method ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Phase Transport

Computational Study of Edge Cooling for Open-Cathode Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell Stacks

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agus P. Sasmito ◽  
Tariq Shamim ◽  
Erik Birgersson ◽  
Arun S. Mujumdar
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Thermal Management ◽  
Computational Study ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Design Parameters ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
The Impact

In open-cathode polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) stacks, a significant temperature rise can exist due to insufficient cooling, especially at higher current densities. To improve stack thermal management while reducing the cost of cooling, we propose a forced air-convection open-cathode fuel cell stack with edge cooling (fins). The impact of the edge cooling is studied via a mathematical model of the three-dimensional two-phase flow and the associated conservation equations of mass, momentum, species, energy, and charge. The model includes the stack, ambient, fan, and fins used for cooling. The model results predict better thermal management and stack performance for the proposed design as compared to the conventional open-cathode stack design, which shows potential for practical applications. Several key design parameters—fin material and fin geometry—are also investigated with regard to the stack performance and thermal management.

scholarly journals On the hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity of the cathode gas diffusion layer in a polymer electrolyte fuel cell

2013 ◽  
Vol 469 (2154) ◽  
pp. 20120695 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Vynnycky ◽  
A. Gordon
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Diffusion Layer ◽  
Gas Diffusion Layer ◽  
Gas Diffusion ◽  
Cell Performance ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Liquid Region ◽  
Catalytic Layer ◽  
Two Phase

An anomaly in the modelling of two-phase flow in the porous cathode gas diffusion layer (GDL) of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell is investigated asymptotically and numerically. Although not commented on previously in literature, the generalized Darcy model used most commonly leads to the surprising prediction that a hydrophilic GDL can lead to better cell performance, in terms of current density, than a hydrophobic one. By analysing a reduced one-dimensional steady-state model and identifying the capillary number as a small dimensionless parameter, we find a potential flaw in the original model, associated with the constitutive relation linking the capillary pressure and the pressures of the wetting and non-wetting phases. Correcting this, we find that, whereas a hydrophilic GDL can sustain a two-phase (gas/liquid) region near the water-producing catalytic layer and gas phase only region further away, a hydrophobic GDL cannot; furthermore, hydrophobic GDLs are found to lead to better cell performance than hydrophilic GDLs, as is indeed experimentally the case.

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