“…All the water generated as the result of the reaction of hydrogen with oxygen is in gaseous form. The model equations have been developed and used by many researchers and are easily available in the fuel cell module manual of ANSYS fluent 18.1 [7] and also in literature [8][9][10][11][12][13][14]. The governing equations and PEM fuel cell sub-models are given in the following sections.…”
Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell is considered one of the best alternatives to conventional sources of energy especially for automobile industry but faces heat and mass transfer challenges limiting its market penetration. This study investigates the effect of different parameters on the performance of a fuel cell with serpentine type single channel geometry using 3-D numerical simulations of the fuel cell model in the academic version of ANSYS Fluent 18.1. The fuel cell domain was discretized using structured hexagonal mesh with 150 K elements after a mesh independence study of the model. Numerous simulations were run for a temperature range of 298 K to 353 K, pressure between 1 to 3 bar and humidity ratio between 20%-80% to isolate the effect of transport phenomena on the performance of fuel cell. The effects of non-uniform temperature and pressure distributions due to varying mass flow rate were also studied. It was concluded that for the proposed design a mass flow rate of 0.8 mg/s at a pressure of 2.5 bar results in high current density, better water and heat removal, and reasonable pressure drop across the flow channels.
“…All the water generated as the result of the reaction of hydrogen with oxygen is in gaseous form. The model equations have been developed and used by many researchers and are easily available in the fuel cell module manual of ANSYS fluent 18.1 [7] and also in literature [8][9][10][11][12][13][14]. The governing equations and PEM fuel cell sub-models are given in the following sections.…”
Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell is considered one of the best alternatives to conventional sources of energy especially for automobile industry but faces heat and mass transfer challenges limiting its market penetration. This study investigates the effect of different parameters on the performance of a fuel cell with serpentine type single channel geometry using 3-D numerical simulations of the fuel cell model in the academic version of ANSYS Fluent 18.1. The fuel cell domain was discretized using structured hexagonal mesh with 150 K elements after a mesh independence study of the model. Numerous simulations were run for a temperature range of 298 K to 353 K, pressure between 1 to 3 bar and humidity ratio between 20%-80% to isolate the effect of transport phenomena on the performance of fuel cell. The effects of non-uniform temperature and pressure distributions due to varying mass flow rate were also studied. It was concluded that for the proposed design a mass flow rate of 0.8 mg/s at a pressure of 2.5 bar results in high current density, better water and heat removal, and reasonable pressure drop across the flow channels.
“…51 Figure 9.Section view of flow field consists of porous and impermeable material (a) 51 and layers of porous interdigitated flow field confined in a cavity between two mesh layers (b), 52 porous confined flow field (c). 84 …”
Section: Advanced Flow Field Designmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Similarly, Wilberforce et al. 84 proposed another flow field that consists of porous aluminum confined in a cavity which is fed by an optimized inlet and outlet manifold for less pressure drop as seen in Figure 9(c). There are three new flow slab designs that have been proposed by Xu et al.…”
Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells are carbon-free electrochemical energy conversion devices that are appropriate for use as a power source on vehicles and mobile devices emerging with their high energy density, lightweight structure, quick startup and lower operating temperature capabilities. However, they need more developments in the aspects of reactant distribution, less pressure drops, precisely balanced water content and heat management to achieve more reliable and higher overall cell performance. Flow field development is one of the most important fields of study to increase cell performance since it has decisive effects on performance parameters, including bipolar plate, and thus fuel cell weight. In this study, recent developments on conventional flow field designs to eliminate their weaknesses and innovative design approaches and flow field architectures are obtained from patent databases, and both numerical and experimental scientific studies. Fundamental designs that create differences are introduced, and their effects on the performance are discussed with regard to origin, objective, innovation strategy of design besides their strength and probable open development ways. As a result, significant enhancements and design strategies on flow field designs in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells are summarized systematically to guide prospective flow field development studies.
“…The working principle relies on the direct and efficient conversion of energy stored in hydrogen fuel in form of chemical energy into electrical energy. This energy is converted through certain electrochemical process that results in the by‐product of only water 4‐11 …”
Summary
Studies into the effects of parameters used in the design of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell have been done. All the modelling parameters considered influenced the performance of the PEM fuel cells. The effect of the operating condition is shown to be significant. Increasing the operating temperature and operating pressure increases the mobility of ions and as a result the ionic conductivity is increased. In addition, the membrane is dried out when the correct humidity is not provided which increases membrane degradation. Adopting good design parameter is necessary for the efficient transportation of both reactants (fuel and oxygen). With regards to the use of flow plates, the serpentine flow plate is highly recommended. Material properties are very important in material selection and new product development. For the membrane electrode area (MEA); the membrane, the ionic conductivity is very important and should be given an important consideration. This investigation thoroughly examined operating condition, design parameters and material properties necessary for PEM fuel cells experiment. The investigation will further accelerate the commercialization of fuel cells and its integration in the automotive industry.
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