Experimental analysis of the effects of the operating variables on the performance of a single PEMFC

Santarelli, Massimo; Torchio, Marco Filippo

doi:10.1016/j.enconman.2006.05.013

Cited by 197 publications

(59 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…The 30 wt% loading of Nafion has been shown in the literature to be the optimum Nafion content in a PEMFC catalyst layer [Easton 2005, Li 2003, Passos 2006, Santarelli 2007. The impregnated material was dried at 90 o C overnight in a static air oven, crushed, and sieved to obtain a particle size of 60 -150 µm.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Final Technical Report: Effects of Impurities on Fuel Cell Performance and Durability

Goodwin¹,

Colón-Mercado²,

Hongsirikarn³

et al. 2011

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARYThe main objectives of this project were to investigate the effect of a series of potential impurities on fuel cell operation and on the particular components of the fuel cell MEA, to propose (where possible) mechanism(s) by which these impurities affected fuel cell performance, and to suggest strategies for minimizing these impurity effects. This project was carried out primarily at Clemson University and the Savannah River National Lab. Fuel cell investigations were done at SRNL while all investigations of the MEA components were carried out at Clemson. Meetings took place weekly at Clemson University and at SRNL with the respective project participants. Joint meetings between researchers at Clemson and SRNL took place quarterly, on average. In addition, frequent communications among project participants took place via e-mail and telephone discussions. On other occasions the researchers met with the technical staff of John Deere for discussions. At least one member of our team routinely participated in the DOE-Sponsored Joint Hydrogen Quality Task Force Meetings (usually conducted monthly).The nature and concentrations of impurities investigated and their impact on fuel cell performance and individual components are given in the table below. The negative effect on Pt/C was to decrease hydrogen surface coverage and hydrogen activation at fuel cell conditions. The negative effect on Nafion components was to decrease proton conductivity, primarily by replacing/reacting with the protons on the Bronsted acid sites of the Nafion.Even though already well known as fuel cell poisons, the effects of CO and NH 3 were studied in great detail early on in the project in order to develop methodology for evaluating poisoning effects in general, to help establish reproducibility of results among a number of laboratories in the U.S. investigating impurity effects, and to help establish lower limit standards for impurities during hydrogen production for fuel cell utilization.New methodologies developed included (1) a means to measure hydrogen surface concentration on the Pt catalyst (HDSAP) before and after exposure to impurities, (2) a way to predict conductivity of a Nafion membranes exposed to impurities using a characteristic acid catalyzed reaction (methanol esterification of acetic acid), and, more importantly, (3) application of the latter technique to predict conductivity on Nafion in the catalyst layer of the MEA. H 2 -D 2 exchange was found to be suitable for predicting hydrogen activation of Pt catalysts.Using a combination of standard catalyst characterization techniques, a structure sensitive catalytic reaction technique (cyclopropane hydrogenolysis), and reaction and transport modeling led to the finding that in the catalyst layer (essentially Nafion/Pt/C) the following best describes the structure. Pt is highly dispersed on the C support, but primarily in the meso-and macropores. The Nafion (ca. 30 wt%) resides primarily on the external surface of the C support where it blocks significant numbers ...

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Final Technical Report: Effects of Impurities on Fuel Cell Performance and Durability

Goodwin¹,

Colón-Mercado²,

Hongsirikarn³

et al. 2011

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“…These operating parameters can include temperature of the Fuel Cell (FC), operating pressure, heat loss, flow distribution, steam reforming, relative humidity of reactant gases, stoichiometric ratio, water distribution, current density and performance (polarisation) curve [19,20]. Observation of these parameters can be done with the aid of a built-in monitoring system that shows these parameters on a screen and can also shut down the fuel cell in emergency situations.…”

Section: Effects Of Parameters On Performance Of the Pefcmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Review of Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulations on PEFC Performance

Chen¹,

Enearu²,

Montalvão³

et al. 2016

J Appl Mech Eng

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Among the number of fuel cells in existence, the proton exchange fuel cell (PEFC) has been favoured because of its numerous applications. These applications range from small power generation in cell phones, to stationary power plants or vehicular applications. However, the principle of operation on PEFCs naturally leads to the development of water from the reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has played an important role in many research and development projects. From automotive to aerospace and even medicine, to the development of fuel cells, by making it possible to investigate different scenarios and fluid flow patterns for optimal performance. CFD allows for in-situ analysis of PEFCs, by studying fluid flow and heat and mass transfer phenomena, thus reducing the need for expensive prototypes and cutting down test-time by a substantial amount. This paper aims at investigating the advances made in the use of CFD as a technique for the performance and optimisation of PEFCs to identify the research and development opportunities in the field, such as the performance of a novel PEFC, with focus on the underlying physics and in-situ analysis of the operations.

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“…This variation depends on several operating parameters, such as temperature [8] and pressure [9], reactant flow rates [10][11], membrane humidification [12], and also on the fuel cell design [13][14]. …”

Section: Pem Fuel Cell Characteristicmentioning

confidence: 99%