Effect of Selected Airborne Contaminants on PEMFC Performance

St‐Pierre, Jean; Zhai, Yunfeng; Angelo, Michael

doi:10.1149/2.057403jes

Cited by 58 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 112 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…4 In the first step, the number of contaminants was reduced to 21 candidates by using several qualitative criteria (1 st tier species). In the second step, all 21 1 st tier species were tested using operating conditions summarized in the experimental section.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…An equivalent circuit model developed for SO 2 contamination 7 adequately represents impedance data ( Figure 3a) for each contaminant in the PEMFC performance database before the contamination period. 4 However, the appearance of a new process invalidates the use of this equivalent circuit because it cannot reproduce the inductive behavior. Modifications have been suggested to consider this feature (Figures 3b and 3c) with the addition of either an R 1 /C 1 parallel circuit 54,55 or an R k /L k series circuit.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additional details are available in the cited literature. 4,[7][8][9] A custom-made single cell with a 50 cm 2 active area was employed. Triple-and double-channel serpentine flow fields were used for the cathode and anode, respectively.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, only 21 ambient air species from a list of more than 200 candidates were recently studied. 4 Furthermore, fuel cell contamination tests require significant resources and may last several tens or a few hundreds of hours, even if accelerated conditions achieved with higher contaminant concentrations are used. As a result, there is a need to develop a simpler method to predict the impact of contaminants on fuel cell performance.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The PEMFC performance database resulting from separate tests performed with 21 airborne contaminants 4 is reexamined with the purpose of exploring the usefulness of two correlations between the kinetic loss at steady state and a contaminant physicochemical parameter. The contaminant dipole moment is first considered, thus significantly extending the range of the previous study 5 from 5 to 21 species.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Relationships between PEMFC Cathode Kinetic Losses and Contaminants’ Dipole Moment and Adsorption Energy on Pt

St‐Pierre

Zhai

2016

J. Electrochem. Soc.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A database summarizing the effects of 21 contaminants on the performance of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) was used to examine relationships between cathode kinetic losses and contaminant physicochemical parameters. Impedance spectroscopy data were employed to obtain oxygen reduction kinetic resistances by fitting data in the 10−158 Hz range to a simplified equivalent circuit. The contaminant dipole moment and the adsorption energy of the contaminant on a Pt surface were chosen as parameters. Dipole moments did not correlate with dimensionless cathode kinetic resistances. In contrast, adsorption energies were quantitatively and linearly correlated with minimum dimensionless cathode kinetic resistances. Contaminants influence the oxygen reduction for contaminant adsorption energies smaller than −24.5 kJ mol −1 , a value near the high limit of the adsorption energy of O 2 on Pt. Dimensionless cathode kinetic resistances linearly increase with decreasing O 2 adsorption energies below −24.5 kJ mol −1 . Measured total cell voltage losses are mostly larger than the cathode kinetic losses calculated from kinetic resistance changes, which indicates the existence of other sources of performance degradation. Modifications to the experimental procedure are proposed to ensure that data are comparable on a similar basis and improve the correlation between contaminant adsorption energy and kinetic cell voltage PEMFCs are attractive energy conversion devices. However, improvements are still required to meet the strict demands of automotive and other markets. PEMFCs are expected to be durable but are exposed to a variety of contaminants either present in air and hydrogen or released by fuel cell system materials, which may be deleterious to performance. 1-3 Only a small fraction of the large number of likely contaminants have been investigated. For example, only 21 ambient air species from a list of more than 200 candidates were recently studied. 4 Furthermore, fuel cell contamination tests require significant resources and may last several tens or a few hundreds of hours, even if accelerated conditions achieved with higher contaminant concentrations are used. As a result, there is a need to develop a simpler method to predict the impact of contaminants on fuel cell performance.A prediction method for the performance loss associated with contamination has not been suggested for PEMFCs. However, the use of a molecule dipole moment was proposed to correlate the halfwave potential of the oxygen reduction reaction. 5 Only 5 contaminants were considered, and data were obtained with a thin film catalyst layer electrode mounted in a conventional three-electrode cell filled with an aqueous electrolyte maintained at room temperature. These operating conditions are significantly different from the PEMFC environment with a solid electrolyte and the presence of a gas diffusion layer covering the catalyst layer.The PEMFC performance database resulting from separate tests performed with 21 airborne contaminants 4 is reexamined ...

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Relationships between PEMFC Cathode Kinetic Losses and Contaminants’ Dipole Moment and Adsorption Energy on Pt

St‐Pierre

Zhai

2016

J. Electrochem. Soc.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Acetylene Contamination Mechanisms in the Cathode of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Zhai

St‐Pierre

2017

ChemElectroChem

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The catalytic reactions of acetylene in contact with air, the electrochemical reactions of acetylene under different potentials, and the contamination reactions of acetylene in an operated proton exchange membrane fuel cell were investigated by using gas chromatography (GC), chronoamperometry, and cyclic voltammetry (CV) techniques. The GC results indicate that carbon dioxide is the catalytic reaction product of acetylene in the cathode and an electro‐oxidation product at high potentials, and it can desorb easily. Ethylene, ethane, and methane are the electrochemical reduction products of acetylene at low cathode potentials, and they can desorb easily. The CV analysis suggests the electroreduction intermediates are vinylidene and ethylidyne at low potentials and electro‐oxidation intermediates CO (or COH‐type species) at high potentials. In an operating fuel cell, acetylene reactions in the cathode include not only catalytic reactions, but also electrochemical redox reactions. According to these catalytic and electrochemical reactions, acetylene contamination mechanisms and possible effective contamination mitigation strategies are proposed.

show abstract

Numerical simulation of particulate matter interaction with the gas diffusion layer of proton‐exchange membrane fuel cells under various relative humidity conditions

Panahi

Ghasemi

2021

Int J Energy Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Summary Proton‐exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) operation and performance degrade when particulate matter (PM) present in the reactant gas stream is collected in the porous structure of the gas diffusion layers (GDL). Interaction of PM carried by the gas stream and their capture efficiency by fibrous structure of GDLs is numerically investigated at various levels of relative humidity (RH) and different particle sizes. For small particles (sub‐micron sizes), the Brownian diffusion mechanism is dominant, while transitioning to interception and inertial impaction mechanisms occur as particle size increases (micron sizes or larger). It is found that high humidity levels result in higher diameter and lower density of PM, lower air density, and lower particle bounce due to the absorption of water vapor in the PM. Of these four effects, the first is the most important and the third is the least important. As humidity level is increased, particle capture efficiency decreases for small particles, but increases for large particles. The present study implies that a filter capable of removing large particles must be installed in the upstream reactant gas supply line to avoid the accumulation/clogging of PM in GDL structure.

show abstract

Effect of Selected Airborne Contaminants on PEMFC Performance

Cited by 58 publications

References 112 publications

Relationships between PEMFC Cathode Kinetic Losses and Contaminants’ Dipole Moment and Adsorption Energy on Pt

Relationships between PEMFC Cathode Kinetic Losses and Contaminants’ Dipole Moment and Adsorption Energy on Pt

Acetylene Contamination Mechanisms in the Cathode of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Numerical simulation of particulate matter interaction with the gas diffusion layer of proton‐exchange membrane fuel cells under various relative humidity conditions

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About