Study of novel flow channels influence on the performance of direct methanol fuel cell

Ramasamy, J. V.; Palaniswamy, Karthikeyan; Kumaresan, T.; Chandran, Mathan; Chen, Rui

doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2021.10.033

Cited by 18 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…At peak power density, the decrement of mole fraction of oxygen from 0.21 at the entry to 0.12 at the exit along the channel for TI compared to 0.14 for CRI demonstrates better transport of oxygen. This increment in oxygen transport can be attributed to better diffusion achieved by improved consumption of oxygen owing to a decrease in average velocity from 3.643 m/s in CRI to 2.79 m/s in TI at 1000 mA/cm 2 current density 34 . The better oxygen transport obtained in TI can also be justified by the area covered under the rib.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 91%

“…This increment in oxygen transport can be attributed to better diffusion achieved by improved consumption of oxygen owing to a decrease in average velocity from 3.643 m/s in CRI to 2.79 m/s in TI at 1000 mA/cm 2 current density. 34 The better oxygen transport obtained in TI can also be justified by the area covered under the rib. The area under the rib for the conventional rectangular channel is 500 mm 2 whereas for the trapezoidal channel the area under the rib is 250 mm 2 .…”

Section: Oxygen Mole Fraction Distributionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Performance evaluation of a trapezoidal interconnector configuration of solid oxide fuel cell: A numerical study

Kumar

Babu

Sonawane

2022

Intl J of Energy Research

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Summary A solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is an intricate system involving an amalgam of several electrochemical reactions with thermal‐fluid‐electrical interactions. To enhance the performance of the fuel cell, the interconnector configuration has to be designed judiciously. In this article, a trapezoidal interconnector (TI) design for anode and cathode flow channels after a thorough simulation carried out with all the multi‐physics involved using ANSYS fluent is proposed. The proposed TI design performance is compared against the conventional rectangular interconnector (CRI) configuration. From the results, it is observed that the TI design provides an increase of 18.2% power density compared to the CRI configuration when the cell is operated at 1123 K operating temperature. The proposed design offers the advantage of operating the cell at a lower operating temperature of 1073 K with an increment of 10.68% power density compared to the 1123 K operating temperature in a CRI configuration. In addition, the influence of rib width on the anode side fuel transport is also evaluated by designing a SOFC with a rectangular parallel anode interconnector and a trapezoidal channel cathode interconnector. It is concluded that the rib width of the anode side has a moderate effect on fuel transport in anode‐supported SOFCs.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 91%

Section: Oxygen Mole Fraction Distributionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Performance evaluation of a trapezoidal interconnector configuration of solid oxide fuel cell: A numerical study

Kumar

Babu

Sonawane

2022

Intl J of Energy Research

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“…In their research, Oliveira et al conducted experiments involving three different serpentine flow fields and observed that the original serpentine flow field exhibited the most uniform distribution of reactants. Ramasamy et al conducted a comparative analysis between the serpentine flow field and an innovative flow field. The results showed that the former achieved a higher level of uniform distribution.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To enhance cell performance, optimizing the shape of the flow field is an important approach. Currently, there is a growing preference for the utilization of serpentine flow fields, − which offer the advantage of achieving a uniform distribution within the flow field . In their research, Oliveira et al conducted experiments involving three different serpentine flow fields and observed that the original serpentine flow field exhibited the most uniform distribution of reactants.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Optimization of Gas Distribution in DMFC Stacks Based on Experiments and CFD Simulations

Yang,

Zhai,

Liu

et al. 2024

Ind. Eng. Chem. Res.

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A 20-cell, 80 W direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) stack was manufactured to investigate the power distribution among the cells. The experimental results indicated a poor cell performance in the middle section of the stack. Subsequent simulations revealed an insufficient gas supply to several cells located in the middle, which aligns with the underperformance in the experiments. This suggests that inadequate gas distribution was responsible for the poor cell performance. Numerical simulations demonstrated that uneven gas distribution was caused by the vortices. Consequently, novel flow field structures were developed to change the vortices in the manifold, resulting in a significant enhancement in the gas distribution uniformity. Experiments confirmed that this new design effectively improved the stack's performance. The findings of this study offer valuable insights for enhancing the flow field design of DMFC stacks.

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“…DMFCs are considered efficient energy devices for various applications, such as stationary power plants, electronic vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicle power, portable electronic devices, forklift power, single soldier power, and backup power for laptops [ 27 , 42 , 47 , 48 ]. At the anode, the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) occurs, where the combination of methanol and water generates six electrons and protons with a byproduct of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) [ 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 ]. To complete the reaction, electrons and protons move to the cathode side through an external electric circuit and proton transport membrane.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modified Cellulose Proton-Exchange Membranes for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells

Palanisamy

Thangarasu

2023

Polymers

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A direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) is an excellent energy device in which direct conversion of methanol to energy occurs, resulting in a high energy conversion rate. For DMFCs, fluoropolymer copolymers are considered excellent proton-exchange membranes (PEMs). However, the high cost and high methanol permeability of commercial membranes are major obstacles to overcome in achieving higher performance in DMFCs. Novel developments have focused on various reliable materials to decrease costs and enhance DMFC performance. From this perspective, cellulose-based materials have been effectively considered as polymers and additives with multiple concepts to develop PEMs for DMFCs. In this review, we have extensively discussed the advances and utilization of cost-effective cellulose materials (microcrystalline cellulose, nanocrystalline cellulose, cellulose whiskers, cellulose nanofibers, and cellulose acetate) as PEMs for DMFCs. By adding cellulose or cellulose derivatives alone or into the PEM matrix, the performance of DMFCs is attained progressively. To understand the impact of different structures and compositions of cellulose-containing PEMs, they have been classified as functionalized cellulose, grafted cellulose, acid-doped cellulose, cellulose blended with different polymers, and composites with inorganic additives.

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Study of novel flow channels influence on the performance of direct methanol fuel cell

Cited by 18 publications

References 45 publications

Performance evaluation of a trapezoidal interconnector configuration of solid oxide fuel cell: A numerical study

Performance evaluation of a trapezoidal interconnector configuration of solid oxide fuel cell: A numerical study

Optimization of Gas Distribution in DMFC Stacks Based on Experiments and CFD Simulations

Modified Cellulose Proton-Exchange Membranes for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells

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