Pressure drop and flow distribution in parallel-channel configurations of fuel cells: Z-type arrangement

A general theoretical model based on mass and momentum conservation has been developed to solve the flow distribution and the pressure drop in Z-type configurations of fuel cells. While existing models neglected either friction term or inertial term, the present model takes both of them into account. The governing equation of the Z-type arrangement was formulated to an inhomogeneous version of the U-type one. Thus, main existing models have been unified to one theoretical framework. The analytical solutions are fully explicit that they are easily used to predict pressure drop and flow distribution for Z-type layers or stacks and provide easy-to-use design guidance under a wide variety of combination of flow conditions and geometrical parameters to investigate the interactions among structures, operating conditions and manufacturing tolerance and to minimize the impact on stack operability. The results can also be used for the design guidance of flow distribution and pressure drop in other manifold systems, such as plate heat exchanges, plate solar collectors, distributors of fluidised bed and boiler headers.     

Flow distribution and pressure drop in parallel-channel configurations of planar fuel cells

Parallel-channel configurations for gas-distributor plates of planar fuel cells reduce the pressure drop, but give rise to the problem of severe flow maldistribution wherein some of the channels may be starved of the reactants. This study presents an analysis of the flow distribution through parallel-channel configurations. One-dimensional models based on mass and momentum balance equations in the inlet and exhaust gas headers are developed for Z- and U-type parallel-channel configurations. The resulting coupled ordinary differential equations are solved analytically to obtain closed-form solutions for the flow distribution in the individual channels and for the pressure drop over the entire distributor plate. The models have been validated by comparing the results with those obtained from three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. Application of the models to typical fuel-cell distributor plates shows that severe maldistribution of flow may arise in certain cases and that this can be avoided by careful choice of the dimensions of the headers and the channels.     

Analysis and optimization of flow distribution in parallel-channel configurations for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Parallel channels have many advantages, such as low pressure drop and easy fabrication, but they may cause flow maldistribution which would result in low reaction efficiency. This study presents an analytical model to calculate the flow distribution of the parallel channels based on the assumption of the analogy between fluid flow and electrical network. The model, which ultimately releases from the solution of a set of nonlinear equations, is validated by comparing with the results obtained from three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. Consequently, the model is used to optimize the geometric dimension of a parallel plate to obtain a uniform flow field distribution.     

Performance analysis of proton-exchange membrane fuel cell stacks used in Beijing urban-route buses trial project

Fuel cell hybrid vehicles' sustained development and commercialization are contingent on the reliability and durability of the fuel cell engines. In August 2008, official trial of the three proton-exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell hybrid city buses commenced in a commercial-operation urban-route in Beijing for one year. In this paper, data from the performance analysis of the automotive fuel cells used in those city buses are presented and analyzed. The durability and reliability of the fuel cell engines under realistic conditions were evaluated by analyzing the standard deviation of the single-cell fuel cell voltages and by estimating the voltage vs. current characteristics obtained using the recursive least squares fitting method. After studying the degradation status by analyzing fitted results from the measured data, it is concluded that the fuel cell engines' performance meets the standard imposed by the driving conditions of the Beijing urban-routes, but that their performance degradation necessitates maintenance in order to ensure normal operation.     

Flow distribution in parallel-channel plate for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Parallel channel flow field with manifold openings is widely used in Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) because of its low-pressure drop and easiness of manufacture. This research presents a hydrodynamic model to describe the airflow distribution, and the predicted pressure differences are validated by experiments. We also investigate the influences of the flow rate, the geometry of header and the length ratio of manifold opening to header region on the airflow distribution. Therefore, the optimal strategy is proposed based on an overall consideration of uniformity and configuration in the fuel-cell plate for application.     

Influence of cathode flow pulsation on performance of proton-exchange membrane fuel cell

The effect of cathode flow pulsation on the performance of a 10-cell proton-exchange membrane fuel cell is investigated. An acoustic woofer generates a pulsating flow, which is added to a unidirectional flow supplied from a compressed air tank. By adding the flow pulsation, the fuel cell power output and the limit current dramatically increase while the fuel cell efficiency slightly decreases. As the pulsation amplitude increases, the improvement in fuel cell performance is more pronounced. The performance enhancement shows no obvious dependency on a pulsation frequency change from 10 to 30 Hz. The cathode flow pulsation effect is more distinct at low cathode flow rates.     

Characterization of flooding and two-phase flow in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell stacks

A partially flooded gas diffusion layer (GDL) model is proposed and solved simultaneously with a stack flow network model to estimate the operating conditions under which water flooding could be initiated in a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell stack. The models were applied to the cathode side of a stack, which is more sensitive to the inception of GDL flooding and/or flow channel two-phase flow. The model can predict the stack performance in terms of pressure, species concentrations, GDL flooding and quality distributions in the flow fields as well as the geometrical specifications of the PEM fuel cell stack. The simulation results have revealed that under certain operating conditions, the GDL is fully flooded and the quality is lower than one for parts of the stack flow fields. Effects of current density, operating pressure, and level of inlet humidity on flooding are investigated.     

A vapour-feed direct-methanol fuel cell with proton-exchange membrane electrolyte

Results are presented on a vapour-feed direct-methanol fuel cell employing a proton-exchange membrane electrolyte. The fuel cell could be operated with 1% methanol, giving a typical performance of 550 mV at 75 mA cm⁻², and a fuel utilisation coefficient of 0.56. At 2 M methanol concentration, the cell voltage load found to be 610–550 mV at a load current density of 100 mA cm⁻². The observed open-circuit potentials of this cell assembly have been found to be in the range 850–980 mV.     

Modelling compression pressure distribution in fuel cell stacks

A general purpose 3D finite element method model has been developed for the estimation of the compression pressure distribution in fuel cell stacks. The model can be used for the optimisation of any type of fuel cell structure at any temperature. The model was validated with pressure sensitive film measurements using PEFC stack components that had low rigidity and were highly deformable.     

Control-orientated thermal model for proton-exchange membrane fuel cell systems

A lumped parameter dynamic model is developed for predicting the stack temperature, temperatures of the exit reactant gases and coolant water outlet in a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) system. A dynamic model for a water pump is also developed and can be used along with the thermal model to control the stack temperature. The thermal and water pump models are integrated with the air flow compressor and PEMFC stack current–voltage models developed by Pukrushpan et al. to study the fuel cell system under open and closed-loop conditions. The results obtained for the aforementioned variables from open-loop simulation studies are found to be similar to the experimental values reported in the literature. Closed-loop simulations using the model are carried out to study the effect of stack temperature on settling times of other variables such as stack voltage, air flow rate, oxygen excess ratio and net power of the stack. Further, interaction studies are performed for selecting appropriate input–output pairs for control purpose. Finally, the developed thermal model can assist the designer in choosing the required number of cooling plates to minimize the difference between the cooling water outlet temperature and stack temperature.     

Pressure drop on water accumulation distribution for a micro PEM fuel cell with different flow field plates

Time-dependent measurements of pressure drop in different flow fields on the cathode of a PEM fuel cell with different operating conditions of mass flow rates and cell temperatures on water accumulation were conducted. The results show that, among four flow fields studied herein, the interdigitated flow channel has the biggest pressure drop as well as the largest water accumulation at an early phase (?30 min) compared to those of the other three channels. In addition, the more water produced, the bigger the pressure drop that occurs. Similarly, the effects of mass flow rates at a fixed cell temperature were also examined and discussed.     

Two-phase flow pressure drop hysteresis in an operating proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Two-phase flow pressure drop hysteresis was studied in an operating PEM fuel cell. The variables studied include air stoichiometry (1.5, 2, 3, 4), temperature (50, 75, 90 °C), and the inclusion of a microporous layer. The cathode channel pressure drops can differ in PEM fuel cells when the current density is increased along a path and then decreased along the same path (pressure drop hysteresis). Generally, the descending pressure drop is greater than the ascending pressure drop at low current densities (<200 mA cm⁻²), and the effect is worse at low stoichiometries and low temperatures. The results show that the hysteresis occurs with or without the inclusion of a microporous layer. Initial results show a modified Lockhart-Martinelli approach seems to be able to predict the two-phase flow pressure drop during the ascending path. The results compare well with photographs taken from the cathode flow field channel of a visualization cell.     

Numerical simulations of two-phase flow in a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell based on the generalized design method

The water management of proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) has a major impact on the performance of the cell system. In order to investigate the influence of air velocity and wettability on the whole process during penetration of liquid water, a generalized two-dimensional model in conjunction with the volume of fluid (VOF) method was used to simulate the whole processes from gas diffusion layer (GDL) to gas channel (GC). The results show that the wettability of the medium plays a significant role than flow rate for the penetration of liquid water in the GDL. It is shown that favorable hydrophobicity and high air velocity in GC is helpful to remove liquid droplets on the GDL surface. By contrast, the stable droplets spacing on GDL surface is more concentrated and the percentage of liquid area is more extensive under the hydrophilic and low-velocity case, which would aggravate the liquid water and hard to remove from the GDL surface.     

Hybrid systems with lead–acid battery and proton-exchange membrane fuel cell

Hybrid systems, based on a lead–acid battery and a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) give the possibility to combine the advantages of both technologies. The benefits for different applications are discussed and the practical realisation of such systems is shown. Furthermore a numerical model for such a hybrid system is described and results are shown and discussed. The results show that the combination of lead–acid batteries and PEMFC shows advantages in case of applications with high peak power requirements (i.e. electric scooter) and applications where the fuel cell is used as auxiliary power supply to recharge the battery. The high efficiency of fuel cells at partial load operation results in a good fuel economy for recharging of lead–acid batteries with a fuel cell system.     

Modelling of coupled electron and mass transport in anisotropic proton-exchange membrane fuel cell electrodes

As one of the key components of proton-exchange membrane fuel cells, the gas-diffusion layer (GDL) that is made of carbon fibres usually exhibits strong structural anisotropy. Nevertheless, the GDL has traditionally been simplified as a homogeneous porous structure in modelling the transport of species through the GDL. In this work, a coupled electron and two-phase mass transport model for anisotropic GDLs is developed. The effects of anisotropic GDL transport properties due to the inherent anisotropic carbon fibres and caused by GDL deformations are studied. Results indicate that the inherent structural anisotropy of the GDL significantly influences the local distribution of both cathode potential and current density. Simulation results further indicate that a GDL with deformation results in an increase in the concentration polarization due to the increased mass-transfer resistance in the deformed GDL. On the other hand, the ohmic polarization is found to be smaller in the deformed GDL as the result of the decreased interfacial contact resistance and electronic resistance in the GDL. This result implies that an optimum deformation needs to be achieved so that both concentration and ohmic losses can be minimized.     

Two-phase flow pressure drop hysteresis in parallel channels of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Two-phase flow pressure drop hysteresis was studied in a non-operational PEM fuel cell to understand the effect of stoichiometry, GDL characteristics, operating range, and initial conditions (dry vs. flooded) for flow conditions typical of an operating fuel cell. This hysteresis is noted when the air and water flow rates are increased and then decreased along the same path, exhibiting different pressure drops. When starting from dry conditions, the descending pressure drop tended to be higher than the ascending pressure drop at lower simulated current densities. The hysteresis effect was noted for stoichiometries of 1-4 and was eliminated at a stoichiometry of 5. It was found that the hysteresis was greater when water breakthrough occurred at higher simulated current densities, which is a function of GDL properties. The operating range had to reach a critical simulated current density (800 mA cm⁻² in this case) between the ascending and descending approach to create a pressure drop hysteresis zone. The descending step size does not change the size of the hysteresis effect, but a larger step size leads to lower fluctuations in the pressure drop signal. An initially flooded condition also showed hysteresis, but the ascending approach tended to have a higher pressure drop than the descending approach.     

Modeling hydrogen starvation conditions in proton-exchange membrane fuel cells

In this study, a steady state and isothermal 2D-PEM fuel cell model is presented. By simulation of a single cell along the channel and in through-plane direction, its behaviour under hydrogen starvation due to nitrogen dilution is analysed. Under these conditions, carbon corrosion and water electrolysis are observed on the cathode side. This phenomenon, causing severe cell degradation, is known as reverse current decay mechanism in literature. Butler-Volmer equations are used to model the electrochemical reactions. In addition, we account for permeation of gases through the membrane and for the local water content within the membrane. The results show that the membrane potential locally drops in areas starved from hydrogen. This leads to potential gradients >1.2 V between electrode and membrane on the cathode side resulting in significant carbon corrosion and electrolysis reaction rates. The model enables the analysis of sub-stoichiometric states occurring during anode gas recirculation or load transients.     

Experimental analysis of internal gas flow configurations for a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell stack

The internal gas distribution system utilised for supplying fresh reactants and removing reaction products from the individual cells of a fuel cell stack can be designed in a parallel, a serial or a mixture of parallel and serial gas flow configuration. In order to investigate the interdependence between the internal stack gas distribution configuration and single cell as well as overall stack performance, a small laboratory-scale fuel cell stack consisting of identical unit cells was subject to operation with different gas distribution configurations and different operating parameters. The current/voltage characteristics measured with the different gas distribution configurations are analysed and compared on unit cell- as well as on stack-level. The results show the significant impact of the internal stack gas distribution system on operation and performance of the individual unit cells and the overall stack.     

Longevity test results for reformate polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell stacks

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) stacks offer a great potential for combined heat and power (CHP) applications because of their good performance and technical maturity of the key components. Nonetheless, some developmental issues have remained open. Among those are the long-term stability with respect to performance degradation and sudden death phenomena like membrane rupture.In a development program for domestic CHP systems, PEMFC stacks intended for long-term operation on reformate were developed. Development targets were high performance, high media utilization, good longevity and low degradation rates. In this paper, results on long-term performance tests of these stacks are reported. Operating times of more than 15,000 h with degradation rates of approx. 10 μV h⁻¹ have been achieved.