Volume 51

Modeling of high-temperature PEM fuel cell incorporating the combined effects of assembly pressure and gas diffusion layer thickness Hongxiang Zheng, Junwen Deng, Chuandong Li, Shuaishuai Yuan, Xinqi Yao, Feng Huang, Ruhang Zhang, Xinhai Yu, Shan-Tung Tu

Abstract

In this paper, a sequential model combining two-dimensional mechanical deformation and three-dimensional non-isothermal deformation was developed to investigate the combined effects of assembly pressure and gas diffusion layer (GDL) thickness on the structure and performance of a high-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell (HT-PEMFC). Through the utilization of the response surface methodology (RSM), it was determined that the HT-PEMFC exhibited its optimal overall performance when the assembly pressure was set at 1.38 MPa and the GDL thickness was 0.375 mm. Additionally, the study also delved into the effects of assembly pressure and GDL thickness on various aspects of the HT-PEMFC, including polarization curves, hydrogen distribution, oxygen distribution, and temperature distribution. It was observed that the temperature in the gas channel was consistently higher than in other solid regions.

Keywords High temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell, Assembly pressure, Gas diffusion layer thickness, Response surface methodology, Combined optimization