A Water and Heat Management Model for Proton‐Exchange‐Membrane Fuel Cells

Nguyen, Trung Van; White, Ralph E.

doi:10.1149/1.2220792

Cited by 1,016 publications

(580 citation statements)

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“…Local water content, λ(x,t), is calculated by equation (10) with boundary conditions (9). Equation (13) relates the stress in the membrane with water content in the membrane for arbitrary RH cycling protocol.…”

Section: Iii: Membrane Stress Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three components are needed to model the mechanical degradation process under RH cycling. These components are: a fuel cell RH distribution model, a hydration/dehydration induced stress model, and a damage accrual model, see operating conditions were published and discussed in [8,9,10,11,12]. Hence, they are not described further in this work, and the focus is on other model components.…”

Section: I: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A mathematical model for predicting the life of polymer electrolyte fuel cell membranes subjected to hydration cycling

Burlatsky¹,

Gummalla²,

O'Neill³

et al. 2012

Journal of Power Sources

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Under typical PEM fuel cell operating conditions, part of membrane electrode assembly is subjected to humidity cycling due to variation of inlet gas RH and/or flow rate. Cyclic membrane hydration/dehydration would cause cyclic swelling/shrinking of the unconstrained membrane. In a constrained membrane, it causes cyclic stress resulting in mechanical failure in the area adjacent to the gas inlet. A mathematical modeling framework for prediction of the lifetime of a PEM FC membrane subjected to hydration cycling is developed in this paper. The model predicts membrane lifetime as a function of RH cycling amplitude and membrane mechanical properties. The modeling framework consists of three model components: a fuel cell RH distribution model, a 2 hydration/dehydration induced stress model that predicts stress distribution in the membrane, and a damage accrual model that predicts membrane life-time. Short descriptions of the model components along with overall framework are presented in the paper. The model was used for lifetime prediction of a GORE-SELECT membrane. I: Introduction:Mechanical degradation of PEM membrane can limit stack lifetime. Operation of a fuel cell under realistic load cycles results in both chemical and mechanical degradation of the polymer electrolyte membrane. Degradation of the membrane causes opening up of pinholes or crazing of polymer [1,2,7] increasing gas-crossover and subsequently resulting in catastrophic failures of the fuel cell stack.Understanding and modeling the mechanical degradation mechanism and kinetics enables prediction of membrane lifetime as a function of PEM operational conditions and optimization of membrane structure through the choice of reinforcement [4], the membrane processing methods and the operating conditions. The physics based model of membrane mechanical degradation could guide the synthesis of new membranes with tuned mechanical properties and enhanced life in a fuel cell.Hydration cycling is a primary cause of the mechanical degradation of a geometrically constrained polymer, which exhibits dimensional changes with varied water content. A simple way to impose mechanical damage to a geometrically constrained PEM membrane is to subject it to humidity cycling. At high RH, the membrane absorbs water, and at low RH, the membrane desorbs water. Such RH cycling would result in swelling 3 and shrinking of an unconstrained polymer. RH cycling of a constrained polymer causes cyclic stress. In PEM, such geometrical constraints are imposed by bipolar plate ribs through the gas diffusion layers (GDLs), catalyst layers adjacent to the membrane and at the seals. Moreover, we hypothesize that internal stress in the membrane can be caused by the difference in gas RH at the anode and cathode membrane surfaces that routinely occurs at fuel cell operational conditions. Cyclic stress in the membrane causes irreversible elongation of the membrane [7] and subsequent formation of crazes and cracks that causes gas crossover through the membrane and stack failure.The goal of...

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Section: Iii: Membrane Stress Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: I: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A mathematical model for predicting the life of polymer electrolyte fuel cell membranes subjected to hydration cycling

Burlatsky¹,

Gummalla²,

O'Neill³

et al. 2012

Journal of Power Sources

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“…This results in a voltage drop and a reduction in output power. If a FC is operated under conditions of dehydration over a long period, the membrane can suffer severe and irreversible damage [7,8,11,12]. In order to improve the performance and extend the lifetime of a FC, it is very important to maintain a balance between the amount of water kept inside the stack and the amount ejected from it [8,11].…”

Section: Poor Water Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of the Main Power Electronics' Advances in Order to Ensure Efficient Operation and Durability of PEMFCs

et al. 2012

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Original scientific paperThis article focuses on the main issues that affect the lifetime and performance of proton-exchange membrane fuel cells. The short lifespans of these fuel cells represent a barrier to their massive commercialization and usage in mobile and stationary applications. As fuel cell is a very complex system, a lot of knowledge of different areas is required, such as chemistry, electricity and mechanics, in order to completely understand its operation and all the problems that can occur during it. It is for this reason that an interdisciplinary approach needs to be taken when designing fuel-cell energy systems. This paper focuses on identifying and solving those issues that negatively affect the lifetime and performance of fuel cells. It is hoped that this article would be a valuable aid for power electronics' researchers and engineers for better understanding the presented issues and a useful guide for solving them with the use of proper power electronic-devices. Initially, the basic operation and structure of a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell is explained. Three main issues that can occur during operation of a mobile or stationary fuel cell energy system are pointed out and discussed in details, on the basis of the state-of-the-art on fuel cell technology. These issues are poor water management, reactant gas starvation and fuel cell current ripple. This article provides answers as to why they occur, how they affect the fuel cell, how they can be mitigated, and what are the future trends within this research field.Key words: PEMFC, Water management, Reactant gas starvation, Current ripple, Power electronics.Pregled znanstvenih napredaka u učinskoj elektronici usmjerenih ka osiguravanju efikasnog rada i dužeg životnog vijeka PEM gorivihćelija.Članak se osvrće na ključna pitanja koja utječu na vrijeme rada i performanse gorivihćelija s polimernom membranom kao elektrolitom. Kratak životni vijek gorivihćelija takve vrste prepreka je njihovoj komercijalizaciji i masovnoj upotrebi u mobilnim i stacionarnim stanicama. Budući da su gorivećelije komplicirani sustavi potrebno je znanje iz raznih područja kemije, elektrotehnike i mehanike da bi se u potpunosti mogao razumjeti njihov način rada i problemi koji se dogadaju. Upravo je zbog toga multidisciplinarni pristup nužnost pri razvoju sustava koji koriste gorivećelije. Ovaj ječlanak usmjeren prema identifikaciji i rješavanju onih problema koji negativno utječu na životni vijek i performanse gorivihćelija. Autori se nadaju daće sečlanak pokazati kao korisna pomoć i vodič istraživačima i inženjerima u domeni učinske elektronike pri susretu s navedenim problemima. Objašnjen je način rada i struktura gorivećelije s polimernom membranom kao elektrolitom. Izložena su, i diskutirana do u detalje, tri glavna problema sa stajališta trenutačnih spoznaja u području učinske elektronike. Ti problemi su: loše upravljanje vodom, nestanak reaktantnog plina i strujni trzaji u gorivimćelijama. Objašnjeno je zašto se ovi problemi dogadaju, kako utječu na gorivućelij...

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“…A value of λ m between 0 and 14 corresponds to the relative humidity of 0% and 100%, respectively [1]. Its variation with humidity and temperature is in the form of [8][9][10][11][12] ( )…”

Section: A Fuel Cell Voltagementioning

confidence: 99%

“…To define this voltage drop term, a maximum current density i max is defined, with which the cell works at the same rate of the maximum supply speed. On this basis, the concentration overpotential v conc can be expressed by [12] …”

Section: A Fuel Cell Voltagementioning

confidence: 99%

A DC-DC converter-based PEM fuel cell system emulator

Rezzak

Khoucha

Benbouzid

et al. 2011

2011 International Conference on Power Engineering, Energy and Electrical Drives

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Abstract-The Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) is being investigated as an alternate power source for various applications as transportation and emergency power supplies. Fuel cell systems are characterized by high costs and complex auxiliary devices. For this reason, a fuel cell emulator can be used as a suitable and economic alternative to a real one for developing and testing a fuel cell power conditioning system. The fuel cell emulator must be able to reproduce the FC nonlinear output voltage-current characteristic. This paper proposes then a possible solution to emulate a PEMFC system by using a DC-DC converter. The fuel cell system, including all its auxiliaries and related control systems, is emulated by a full-bridge converter experimentally achieved and controlled in the DSP2812 environment. The converter-based system allows the behavior of any fuel cell to be easily emulated and can be used in laboratory as a low-cost system for design and experimental purposes since only a DC-DC control modification is necessary.

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A Water and Heat Management Model for Proton‐Exchange‐Membrane Fuel Cells

Cited by 1,016 publications

References 4 publications

A mathematical model for predicting the life of polymer electrolyte fuel cell membranes subjected to hydration cycling

A mathematical model for predicting the life of polymer electrolyte fuel cell membranes subjected to hydration cycling

A Review of the Main Power Electronics' Advances in Order to Ensure Efficient Operation and Durability of PEMFCs

A DC-DC converter-based PEM fuel cell system emulator

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