Investigation of water transport through membrane in a PEM fuel cell by water balance experiments |
| |
| Affiliation: | 1. Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems (CAVS), Box 5405, Mississippi State University, 200 Research Blvd. Starkville, MS 39762-5405, USA;2. Dave C. Swalm School of Chemical Engineering, Box 9595, Mississippi State University, MS 39762, USA;1. Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Connecticut, 191 Auditorium Road, Unit 3222, Storrs, CT 06269-3222, USA;2. Department of Energy, Politecnico di Milano, via Lambruschini 4, Milano 20156, Italy;3. Laboratory for Innovation in New Energy Technologies, CEA, 38054 Grenoble, France;4. Center for Clean Energy Engineering, University of Connecticut, 44 Weaver Road, Storrs, CT 06269-5233, USA;5. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Connecticut, 97 North Eagleville Road, Unit 3136, Storrs, CT 06269, USA;1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, No.1, University Road, Tainan City 701, Taiwan;2. Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, National Cheng Kung University, No.1, University Road, Tainan City 701, Taiwan;1. Energy Systems Design Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada;2. Automotive Fuel Cell Cooperation, Burnaby, British Columbia V5J 5J8, Canada |
| |
| Abstract: | Water balance in a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) was investigated by measurements of the net drag coefficient under various conditions. The effects of water balance in the PEMFC on the cell performance were also investigated at different operating conditions. Experimental results reveal that the net drag coefficient of water through the membrane depended on current density and humidification of feed gases. It was found that the net drag coefficient (net number of water molecules transported per proton) ranged from ?0.02 to 0.93, and was dependent on the operating conditions, the current load and the level of humidification. It was also found that the humidity of both anode and cathode inlet gases had a significant effect on the fuel cell performance. The resistance of the working fuel cell showed that the membrane resistance increased as the feed gas relative humidity (RH) decreased. The diffusion of water across Nafion membranes was also investigated by experimental water flux measurements. The electro-osmotic drag coefficient was evaluated from the experimental results of water balance and diffusion water flux measurements. The value of electro-osmotic drag coefficient, ranging from 1.5 to 2.6 under various operating conditions, was in agreement with literature values. The electro-osmotic drag coefficient, the net flux of water through the membrane and the effective drag as a function of operating conditions will also provide validation data for the fuel cell modeling and simulation efforts. |
| |
| Keywords: | |
| 本文献已被 ScienceDirect 等数据库收录！ |
|
