Effect of gas-diffusion electrode material heterogeneity on the structural integrity of polymer electrolyte fuel cell

Energy ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 35 (12) ◽  
pp. 5241-5249 ◽  
Author(s):  
K.K. Poornesh ◽  
Chongdu Cho ◽  
Do-Young Kim ◽  
Yongsug Tak
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Electrode Material ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Gas Diffusion ◽  
Gas Diffusion Electrode ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Material Heterogeneity

Influence of Cell Components Structure on Coupling Phenomena in Single Cell of Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Akira Nishimura ◽  
Atsushi Morimoto ◽  
Shigeki Tanaka ◽  
Atsushi Oshima ◽  
Masafumi Hirota ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Gas Diffusion ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Dominant Factor ◽  
Gas Channel ◽  
Observation Area ◽  
Cell Components

The purpose of this study is to point out the dominant factor of heat and mass distribution in single cell of polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC). The numerical simulation by simple 3D model of PEFC has been investigated to clarify the influence of cell components structure on heat and mass transfer phenomena in PEFC. In addition, the power generation experiment and the measurement of in-plane temperature distribution by thermograph were carried out. From the simulation results, the gas channel pitch of separator was the key factor to unify in-plane distribution of temperature and gas concentration on the reaction surface. The compression of gas diffusion layer (GDL) by cell binding caused wider distribution of mass concentration in GDL. According to the experimental results, the power generation performance was promoted with the decrease in gas channel pitch irrespective of relative humidity of supply gas. In addition, the temperature range in observation area was lower with the decrease in gas channel pitch.

Effect of Operating Temperature on the Water Removal in a Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wanyuan Shi ◽  
Nobuyuki Oshima ◽  
L. Kumar Saha ◽  
Eru Kurihara
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Liquid Water ◽  
Water Saturation ◽  
Operating Temperature ◽  
Gas Diffusion ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Water Removal ◽  
Operation Temperature ◽  
Increasing Temperature

In order to investigate the effect of operation temperature on the liquid water removal in the polymer electrolyte fuel cell, a one-dimensional steady state mathematical model was developed for the cathode gas diffusion layer (GDL). Numerical results indicate that liquid water saturation significantly increases with increases in the operating temperature of the fuel cell because the capillary pressure in the hydrophobic GDL decreases with increasing temperature. An elevated operating temperature has an undesirable influence on the removal of liquid water inside the GDL. A reported peculiar phenomenon in which the flooding of the fuel cell under a high operating temperature and an over-saturated environment is more serious in a GDL combined with a micro-porous layer (MPL) than in a GDL without an MPL (Lim and Wang, Electrochimica Acta, 49, pp. 4149–4156, 2004) is explained based on the present analysis.

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