Instrumentation for PEM fuel cell transient degradation monitoring

Fuel cells have attracted considerable interest as environmentally friendly sources of electrical power. However, fuel cell reliability and failure mechanisms are among the less well-understood trade-offs in fuel cell system design. This work introduces a PEM membrane degradation test stand and monitoring system that runs membranes in a realistic, load-transient environment. The data collected with this system may ultimately establish electrical terminal diagnostics for fuel cells and guidelines for reliable fuel cell operation.