In-situ measurements of GDL effective permeability and under-land cross-flow in a PEM fuel cell

Taira, Hidetaka; Liu, Hongtan

doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2012.03.030

Cited by 33 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 17 publications

(25 reference statements)

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“…The influence of turbulent flow can be almost disregarded under these conditions. The air permeability of the porous transport layers lies between 8 · 10 −13 m 2 and 7 · 10 −12 m 2 , which is in good agreement with related investigations performed by Grigoriev et al and Bromberger et al As an alternative to sintered tapes, porous carbon tapes with porosities in the range of 60–80% can be used as PTLs . Gostick et al report maximum gas permeabilities for pure carbon tapes of up to 1 · 10 −11 m 2 , which can be explained by their higher porosity.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 85%

Manufacturing of Large‐Scale Titanium‐Based Porous Transport Layers for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Electrolysis by Tape Casting

et al. 2019

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Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) electrolysis is an ideal method for the direct conversion of regenerative energy into hydrogen. A key component of PEM electrolysis stacks is the porous transport layer (PTL), which is usually comprised of titanium to withstand the harsh conditions of water splitting. This present study investigates the potential of tape casting as a means of mass producing titanium transport layers in a cost-effective way. Gasatomized and hydrogenation-dehydrogenation titanium powders are used as starting materials. A systematic study is conducted to find processing parameters, which can demonstrate the potential of tape casting as a means of manufacturing large-scale porous transport layers for PEM electrolyzers. For proof of concept, the dimensions of the porous transport layer are scaled up to 470 Â 470 mm 2 (at a thickness of 300 μm) and the component is successfully operated in an industrial electrolyzer under realistic conditions.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 85%

Manufacturing of Large‐Scale Titanium‐Based Porous Transport Layers for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Electrolysis by Tape Casting

et al. 2019

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“…To account for the geometry of the flow-field, the Darcy expression can be integrated across a land width, L, from the inlet pressure (p in ) to the outlet pressure (p out ), yielding [30] …”

Section: Effective Permeability Trendsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently Taira and Liu analyzed in-situ effective permeability due to cross-flow in PEFC highlighting its sensitivity to humidity and land widths as well as characterizing non-Darcy effects [30], yet the water content remained unknown. This study builds on the previous works by imaging the MEA liquid-water behavior with different flow rates under parallel and interdigitated configurations in order to provide a more fundamental understanding of the relationship between liquid-water behavior and cross-flow.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of cross-flow on PEFC liquid-water distribution: An in-situ high-resolution neutron radiography study

Santamaria

Becton

Cooper

et al. 2015

Journal of Power Sources

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h i g h l i g h t sWe have studied the impact of cross-flow on gas-diffusion layer saturation levels. Cell saturation levels correlate strongly with the level of cross-flow rate. GDL saturation is lower at higher permeability. Water removal is more effective at higher channel-to-channel pressure gradients. Liquid-water transport mechanisms similar to breakthrough pressure phenomena exist for under-land area transport. a b s t r a c tLiquid-water management in polymer-electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) remains an area of ongoing research. To enhance water removal, certain flow-fields induce cross-flow, or flow through the gas-diffusion layer (GDL) via channel-to-channel pressure differences. While beneficial to water removal, cross-flow comes at the cost of higher pumping pressures and may lead to membrane dehydration and other deleterious issues. This paper examines the impact of cross-flow on component saturation levels as determined through in-plane high-resolution neutron radiography. Various humidities and operating conditions are examined, and the results demonstrate that cell saturation levels correlate strongly with the level of cross-flow rate, and lower GDL saturation levels are found to correlate with an increase in permeability at higher flow rates. Effective water removal is found to occur at channel-to-channel pressure gradients greater than the measured breakthrough pressure of the GDL, evidence that similar liquid-water transport mechanisms exist for under-land area transport as in transverse GDL flow.

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“…The permeability of a porous material is typically determined by experimentally measuring the pressure drop of fluid flowing through the material at a known flow rate, and using Darcy's Law (Equation 12) to then determine the permeability. This is demonstrated in a number of literature sources, including some studies of fuel cell diffusion layers [42,43].…”

Section: Porous Modelling and Permeability Measurementmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…As demonstrated in literature [42,43], the permeability of a porous material can be determined by measuring the pressure drop of fluid flowing through the material. If the fluid properties, material thickness, and flow rate are known, the permeability can be calculated from Equation 12, as rearranged here to isolate the permeability coefficient:…”

Section: Experimental Setup and Componentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fluid Dynamics Modelling and Experimental Studies of the Flowing Electrolyte Channel in a Flowing Electrolyte - Direct Methanol Fuel Cell

Duivesteyn¹

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Fuel cells, and direct methanol fuel cells in particular, are a technology with intriguing potential. However, methanol crossover is a significant concern in direct methanol fuel cells that reduces power and efficiency. The flowing electrolyte -direct methanol fuel cell is a concept intended to combat this issue by using a sulphuric acid flowing electrolyte layer to remove crossed-over methanol before it can reach the cathode.Hydrodynamic modelling of the flowing electrolyte channel was conducted in order to investigate the flow characteristics in this porous channel and analyze its response to various parameters. It was concluded that pressure drop decreases with temperature, is proportional to volume flux but unaffected by channel thickness, and can be reduced by increasing permeability, which can be achieved with higher porosities and pore diameters. Experimental studies noted improved cell performance at higher temperatures, but limited improvements at higher volume fluxes, likely due to leakage associated with higher pressure drops. Experimentally estimated permeability values had some discrepancy with theoretical values, highlighting the sensitivity of permeability values to imprecise parameters.It was recommended that the flowing electrolyte channel should be very thin with a higher sphere diameter and lower porosity with a flow rate high enough to effectively negate methanol crossover. However, a possible alternative may be to use a higher porosity, but increase the flow rate to achieve the same performance; this may result in a lower pressure drop. iii Acknowledgements I would like to thank a number of individuals for their roles in making this work possible. First of all, I would like to thank my supervisors, Dr. Edgar Matida and Dr. Cynthia Cruickshank. Their advice, guidance, and feedback have always been helpful and insightful, and I am truly grateful to have had such excellent supervisors. Secondly, I would like to thank my colleagues David Ouellette and Yashar Kablou for sharing their expertise and experience on fuel cell modelling and experimentation with me.

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In-situ measurements of GDL effective permeability and under-land cross-flow in a PEM fuel cell

Cited by 33 publications

References 17 publications

Manufacturing of Large‐Scale Titanium‐Based Porous Transport Layers for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Electrolysis by Tape Casting

Manufacturing of Large‐Scale Titanium‐Based Porous Transport Layers for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Electrolysis by Tape Casting

Effect of cross-flow on PEFC liquid-water distribution: An in-situ high-resolution neutron radiography study

Fluid Dynamics Modelling and Experimental Studies of the Flowing Electrolyte Channel in a Flowing Electrolyte - Direct Methanol Fuel Cell

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