Investigating Phase‐Change‐Induced Flow in Gas Diffusion Layers in Fuel Cells with X‐ray Computed Tomography

Shum, Andrew D.; Parkinson, Dilworth Y.; Xiao, Xianghui; Weber, Adam Z.; Burheim, Odne Stokke; Zenyuk, Iryna V.

doi:10.1016/j.electacta.2017.10.012

Cited by 57 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 43 publications

(69 reference statements)

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“…The reconstructions and phase retrieval were performed using the Gridrec algorithm 29 , 30 with open-source TomoPy 31 . The reconstruction parameters and details are described previously 32 , 38 . Image processing, 8-bit conversion, and analysis was carried out with open-source Fiji/ImageJ 33 .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…7a shows well-defined regions for the anode, AEM, and cathode, indicating the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) was well assembled in the tomography cell. Details regarding the experimental setup and data analysis are provided in the Methods Section [26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33] . At OCV under 100% RH, longitudinal sections of both the anode (Fig.…”

Section: Effects Of Amfc Water On Ionomer Swelling and Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

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Using operando techniques to understand and design high performance and stable alkaline membrane fuel cells

et al. 2020

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There is a need to understand the water dynamics of alkaline membrane fuel cells under various operating conditions to create electrodes that enable high performance and stable, long-term operation. Here we show, via operando neutron imaging and operando micro X-ray computed tomography, visualizations of the spatial and temporal distribution of liquid water in operating cells. We provide direct evidence for liquid water accumulation at the anode, which causes severe ionomer swelling and performance loss, as well as cell dryout from undesirably low water content in the cathode. We observe that the operating conditions leading to the highest power density during polarization are not generally the conditions that allow for long-term stable operation. This observation leads to new catalyst layer designs and gas diffusion layers. This study reports alkaline membrane fuel cells that can be operated continuously for over 1000 h at 600 mA cm −2 with voltage decay rate of only 32-μV h −1the best-reported durability to date.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Effects Of Amfc Water On Ionomer Swelling and Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

Using operando techniques to understand and design high performance and stable alkaline membrane fuel cells

et al. 2020

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“…Water evaporates faster near the surface of the gas-diffusion layer, with the majority of the water evaporating above 55 °C. [29]…”

Section: Water Transport Through the Gas-diffusion Layermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[109] This is in agreement with the in situ analysis of the gas-diffusion layer in bespoke systems, which demonstrated complete water evaporation above 55 °C. [29] This analysis has also characterized dead-ended anode operation. Initially, the water, current density, and heat profiles are uniform.…”

Section: Capturing Multiple Phenomena In the Same Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

In Situ and Operando Characterization of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

2019

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For proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) to become a mainstream energy source, significant improvements in their performance, durability, and efficiency are necessary. To improve their durability, there must be a solid understanding of how the structural and electrochemical processes are affected during operation to propose mitigation strategies. To this aim, in situ and operando characterization techniques locally identify structural and electrochemical processes, which cannot be captured using conventional techniques. Nevertheless, linking these properties in the same geometric area has been challenging due to its inherent limitations, such as sample size and imaging resolution. This has created a knowledge gap in structure-to-electrochemical performance relationships as operation and degradation unevenly affect different areas of the cell.

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“…Much of works along this line have been summarized in an early review article by Bazylak [43] and a more recent review article by Zenyuk [44]. In complement to neutron radiography, the PEMFC community quickly realized the benefits of operando studies to explore water formation, which has now become a staple technique for fuel cell characterization [45][46][47][48][49], and has been used to evaluate processing parameters [50]. More recently, this has also been extended to evaluate the performance of polymer electrolyte based electrolysers for hydrogen production [51][52][53], providing insight into mutli-phase flow.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emerging X-ray imaging technologies for energy materials

et al. 2020

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With the growing need for sustainable energy technologies, advanced characterization methods become more and more critical for optimizing energy materials and understanding their operation mechanisms. In this review, we focus on the synchrotron-based X-ray imaging technologies, and the associated applications in gaining fundamental insights into the physical/chemical properties and reaction mechanisms of energy materials. We will discuss a few major X-ray imaging technologies, including X-ray projection imaging, transmission X-ray microscopy, scanning transmission X-ray microscopy, tender and soft X-ray imaging, and coherent diffraction imaging. Researchers can choose from various X-ray imaging techniques with different working principles based on research goals and sample specifications. With the X-ray imaging techniques, we can obtain the morphology, phase, lattice and strain information of energy materials in both 2D and 3D in an intuitive way. In addition, due to the high penetration of X-rays, operando/in-situ experiments can be designed to track the qualitative and quantitative changes of the samples during operation. We expect this review can broaden reader's view on X-ray imaging techniques and inspire new ideas and possibilities in energy materials research.

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Investigating Phase‐Change‐Induced Flow in Gas Diffusion Layers in Fuel Cells with X‐ray Computed Tomography

Cited by 57 publications

References 43 publications

Using operando techniques to understand and design high performance and stable alkaline membrane fuel cells

Using operando techniques to understand and design high performance and stable alkaline membrane fuel cells

In Situ and Operando Characterization of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Emerging X-ray imaging technologies for energy materials

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