Influence of flow field and gas diffusion layer on polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell performance

Abstract

In the present study, the flow field in the bi-polar plate and Gas diffusion layer (GDL) of 1.2 kW Nexa fuel cell (FC) training system having a serpentine flow field has been examined. The channel dimension and shape in the flow field of the bipolar/end plates have been examined. Pressure drop with hydrogen flow rate and channel length. For enormous hydrogen inputs, The optimal measurement is around 1.5, 1.5,, and 0.5 mm for the values of channel width, channel depth, and width of land, corresponding Research on the effect of channel designs revealed that semi-circular, rectangle and triangular-shaped and found The land width for triangular and semicircular-shaped are almost zero millimeters which increase the water vapor accumulation, due to which the losses increase. However there are very few losses in the polarization curve seen in the square cross-section because there is very l water vapor buildup. A GDL is an essential component of an FC. The three-dimensional model of the GDL is simulated using COMSOL metaphysics 4.2 and observed that increased porosity facilitated the entry of more reactants into the reaction side, resulting in increased current density. Low membrane thickness resulted from excessive current density in the membrane. Thicker GDL provides reactant species that raise the rate of consumption at the point where the catalytic layer and GDL interface. The outcomes of the simulation are contrasted with experimental data found in published works. The comparison demonstrates that the modeling outcomes and the experimental data agree quite well.