Effective removal and transport of water in a PEM fuel cell flow channel having a hydrophilic plate

Effective removal and transport of water in the flow channel of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell (PEMFC) is significantly important to the critical water management in PEMFCs. In this study, the process of water removal and transport is investigated numerically by using the volume-of-fluid method for a flow channel having a hydrophilic plate in the middle of the channel. The results show that the liquid water droplet on the membrane-electrode assembly (MEA) surface can be removed effectively, and the removal process is facilitated significantly by the hydrophilic plate which should have a surface contact angle larger than the bottom channel surface but less than the MEA surface. Once the liquid water contacts the plate, it is detached from the MEA surface, and transported to the channel surface along the plate surface; whereas without the plate the water droplet is transported along the MEA surface under the same flow condition. The pressure drop associated with the flow in the channel can be reduced substantially by the presence of the plate due to a characteristic change in the water removal and transport process, when compared to the pressure drop in a conventional flow channel or a channel with a needle shown in literature. The wettability, the length and the height of the plate all can have an impact on the water transport and dynamics as well as the associated pressure drop in the flow channel. A parametric study is carried out to determine the optimal values for the surface contact angle, the length and height of the plate.

[1]  Xianguo Li,et al.  Water transport in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells , 2011 .

[2]  Hui Wen Ku,et al.  The optimal parameters estimation for rectangular cylinders installed transversely in the flow channel of PEMFC from a three-dimensional PEMFC model and the Taguchi method , 2011 .

[3]  Jinsheng Xiao,et al.  Characteristics of droplet and film water motion in the flow channels of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells , 2006 .

[4]  Qing Du,et al.  Numerical investigation of water dynamics in a novel proton exchange membrane fuel cell flow channel , 2013 .

[5]  Xianguo Li,et al.  An experimental and numerical investigation on the cross flow through gas diffusion layer in a PEM fuel cell with a serpentine flow channel , 2007 .

[6]  Biao Zhou,et al.  Water behavior in serpentine micro-channel for proton exchange membrane fuel cell cathode , 2005 .

[7]  Sirivatch Shimpalee,et al.  Numerical studies on rib & channel dimension of flow-field on PEMFC performance , 2007 .

[8]  Wei-Mon Yan,et al.  Analysis of reactant gas transport in a PEM fuel cell with partially blocked fuel flow channels , 2005 .

[9]  Xianguo Li,et al.  Three‐dimensional simulation of water droplet movement in PEM fuel cell flow channels with hydrophilic surfaces , 2011 .

[10]  Xianguo Li,et al.  Development and impact of sandwich wettability structure for gas distribution media on PEM fuel cell performance , 2011 .

[11]  B. Yi,et al.  Effects of hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties on the water behavior in the micro-channels of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell , 2006 .

[12]  Xianguo Li.  Principles of fuel cells , 2005 .

[13]  T. Henriques,et al.  Increasing the efficiency of a portable PEM fuel cell by altering the cathode channel geometry: A numerical and experimental study , 2010 .

[14]  Biao Zhou,et al.  Liquid water transport in parallel serpentine channels with manifolds on cathode side of a PEM fuel cell stack , 2006 .

[15]  Xianguo Li,et al.  Review of bipolar plates in PEM fuel cells: Flow-field designs , 2005 .

[16]  Xianguo Li,et al.  Superhydrophobic flow channel surface and its impact on PEM fuel cell performance , 2014 .

[17]  Horng-Wen Wu,et al.  Numerical predictions of a PEM fuel cell performance enhancement by a rectangular cylinder installed transversely in the flow channel , 2009 .

[18]  S. Perng,et al.  Effects of internal flow modification on the cell performance enhancement of a PEM fuel cell , 2008 .

[19]  Anthony D. Santamaria,et al.  Quantification of water in hydrophobic and hydrophilic flow channels subjected to gas purging via ne , 2011 .

[20]  Ned Djilali,et al.  Numerical investigation of water droplet dynamics in a low-temperature fuel cell microchannel: Effect of channel geometry , 2010 .

[21]  Wei-Mon Yan,et al.  Effects of baffle-blocked flow channel on reactant transport and cell performance of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell , 2005 .

[22]  Yun Wang,et al.  A review of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells: Technology, applications,and needs on fundamental research , 2011 .

[23]  Xianguo Li,et al.  A flow channel design procedure for PEM fuel cells with effective water removal , 2007 .

[24]  Jianlu Zhang,et al.  Effects of Hardware Design and Operation Conditions on PEM Fuel Cell Water Flooding , 2010 .

[25]  Chin-Tsan Wang,et al.  Novel biometric flow slab design for improvement of PEMFC performance , 2010 .

[26]  Biao Zhou,et al.  Liquid water transport in straight micro-parallel-channels with manifolds for PEM fuel cell cathode , 2006 .

[27]  Xianguo Li,et al.  A comprehensive, consistent and systematic mathematical model of PEM fuel cells , 2009 .

[28]  J. Brackbill,et al.  A continuum method for modeling surface tension , 1992 .

[29]  J. Caton,et al.  Monitoring an Electrode Flooding Through the Back Pressure in a Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) Fuel Cell , 2008 .