Study on shape error effect of metallic bipolar plate on the GDL contact pressure distribution in proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Thin metallic bipolar plate (BPP), due to mechanical strength, thermal conductivity, high power density, and relatively low cost, is considered to be an alternative to graphite BPP in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell. However, shape error of thin metallic BPPs is not avoidable due to its flexibility and springback in stamping process, as well as deformation resulted from thermal stress in welding process. In this study, fluctuation analysis is conducted and response surface methodology (RSM) is adopted to establish the relationship between shape error and contact pressure distribution on gas diffusion layer (GDL). Thin metallic BPPs made of stainless steel (SS) 304 sheets are fabricated and shape error is defined. Two types of specimens are selected and assembled with GDL. Effects of assembly force, BPP size and shape error are systematically investigated and a response surface model is developed to predict the effect on contact pressure distribution resulted from the shape error of BPP. The methodology in this study is beneficial to understand the effect of the shape error and predict the acceptable shape error. Based on the model, tolerance of the shape error of BPP is given to guide the manufacturing process of the thin metallic BPP.

[1]  Tongxi Yu,et al.  On the range of applicability of results for the springback of an elastic/perfectly plastic rectangular plate after subjecting it to biaxial pure bending—II , 1981 .

[2]  Miao Qian,et al.  A micro-reactor with micro-pin-fin arrays for hydrogen production via methanol steam reforming , 2012 .

[3]  Deniz Baş,et al.  Modeling and optimization I: Usability of response surface methodology , 2007 .

[4]  Linfa Peng,et al.  Effect of dimensional error of metallic bipolar plate on the GDL pressure distribution in the PEM fuel cell , 2009 .

[5]  Zhengkai Tu,et al.  Evaluation of 5 kW proton exchange membrane fuel cell stack operated at 95 °C under ambient pressure , 2013 .

[6]  P. Michaleris,et al.  Comparison of buckling distortion propensity for SAW, GMAW, and FSW , 2006 .

[7]  Hubert A. Gasteiger,et al.  Handbook of fuel cells : fundamentals technology and applications , 2003 .

[8]  Dong Yol Yang,et al.  Springback prediction for sheet metal forming process using a 3D hybrid membrane/shell method , 2002 .

[9]  Shahram Karimi,et al.  A Review of Metallic Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells: Materials and Fabrication Methods , 2012 .

[10]  Jun Ni,et al.  A Numerical Model for Predicting Gas Diffusion Layer Failure in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells , 2011 .

[11]  Zhiping Luo,et al.  Evaluation of self-water-removal in a dead-ended proton exchange membrane fuel cell , 2013 .

[12]  M. Koç,et al.  Corrosion resistance characteristics of stamped and hydroformed proton exchange membrane fuel cell metallic bipolar plates , 2010 .

[13]  J. W. Van Zee,et al.  The effects of compression and gas diffusion layers on the performance of a PEM fuel cell , 1999 .

[14]  Tongxi Yu,et al.  Theoretical prediction of the springback of metal sheets after a double-curvature forming operation , 1999 .

[15]  J. Ni,et al.  Investigation of micro/meso sheet soft punch stamping process - simulation and experiments , 2009 .

[16]  Hidekazu Murakawa,et al.  FEM prediction of buckling distortion induced by welding in thin plate panel structures , 2008 .

[17]  P. Papanikos,et al.  Numerical simulation of the laser welding process in butt-joint specimens , 2003 .

[18]  Tongxi Yu,et al.  Springback after the biaxial elastic-plastic pure bending of a rectangular plate—I , 1981 .

[19]  Jun Ni,et al.  Robust design of assembly parameters on membrane electrode assembly pressure distribution , 2007 .

[20]  Allen M. Hermann,et al.  Bipolar plates for PEM fuel cells: A review , 2005 .

[21]  Muammer Koç,et al.  Fabrication of micro-channel arrays on thin metallic sheet using internal fluid pressure: Investigations on size effects and development of design guidelines , 2008 .

[22]  Michael R. Lovell,et al.  Predicting springback in sheet metal forming: an explicit to implicit sequential solution procedure , 1999 .

[23]  Muammer Koç,et al.  Effect of manufacturing processes on formability and surface topography of proton exchange membrane fuel cell metallic bipolar plates , 2010 .

[24]  S. Ferreira,et al.  Box-Behnken design: an alternative for the optimization of analytical methods. , 2007, Analytica chimica acta.

[25]  P. Haldar,et al.  Effect of surface roughness of composite bipolar plates on the contact resistance of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell , 2009 .

[26]  Jason Marcinkoski,et al.  Manufacturing process assumptions used in fuel cell system cost analyses , 2011 .

[27]  Gang Liu,et al.  Improving dimensional accuracy of a u-shaped part through an orthogonal design experiment , 2002 .

[28]  Mevlut Fatih Peker,et al.  Investigations on the variation of corrosion and contact resistance characteristics of metallic bipo , 2011 .

[29]  Muammer Koç,et al.  Effect of manufacturing processes on contact resistance characteristics of metallic bipolar plates i , 2011 .

[30]  Bi Zhang,et al.  Experimental study on clamping pressure distribution in PEM fuel cells , 2008 .

[31]  R. Roshandel,et al.  The effects of non-uniform distribution of catalyst loading on polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell performance , 2007 .

[32]  Jenn-Jiang Hwang,et al.  Effect of clamping pressure on the performance of a PEM fuel cell , 2007 .

[33]  Chih-Yung Wen,et al.  Experimental study of clamping effects on the performances of a single proton exchange membrane fuel cell and a 10-cell stack , 2009 .

[34]  S. Jack Hu,et al.  Design, manufacturing, and performance of PEM fuel cell metallic bipolar plates , 2008 .

[35]  Jun Ni,et al.  Fabrication of Metallic Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell by Flexible Forming Process-Numerical Simulations and Experiments , 2010 .

[36]  Lin Wang,et al.  A parametric study of PEM fuel cell performances , 2003 .