Probing Liquid Water Profile in the Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell Membrane

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 1027-1033 ◽  
Author(s):  
Partha P. Mukherjee ◽  
Thomas Springer ◽  
R. Mukundan ◽  
Daniel S. Hussey ◽  
David Jacobson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Cell Membrane ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Liquid Water ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Water Profile

Effect of Operating Temperature on the Water Removal in a Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wanyuan Shi ◽  
Nobuyuki Oshima ◽  
L. Kumar Saha ◽  
Eru Kurihara
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Liquid Water ◽  
Water Saturation ◽  
Operating Temperature ◽  
Gas Diffusion ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Water Removal ◽  
Operation Temperature ◽  
Increasing Temperature

In order to investigate the effect of operation temperature on the liquid water removal in the polymer electrolyte fuel cell, a one-dimensional steady state mathematical model was developed for the cathode gas diffusion layer (GDL). Numerical results indicate that liquid water saturation significantly increases with increases in the operating temperature of the fuel cell because the capillary pressure in the hydrophobic GDL decreases with increasing temperature. An elevated operating temperature has an undesirable influence on the removal of liquid water inside the GDL. A reported peculiar phenomenon in which the flooding of the fuel cell under a high operating temperature and an over-saturated environment is more serious in a GDL combined with a micro-porous layer (MPL) than in a GDL without an MPL (Lim and Wang, Electrochimica Acta, 49, pp. 4149–4156, 2004) is explained based on the present analysis.

Characterization of the Fracture Energy of a PFCB/PVDF Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell Membrane Using a Knife Slit Test

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashley R. Gordon ◽  
Michael W. Ellis ◽  
David A. Dillard ◽  
Scott W. Case ◽  
Robert B. Moore ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Cell Membrane ◽  
Fracture Energy ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Polymer Blend ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Polyvinylidene Fluoride ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell ◽  
Fracture Tests

Polymer electrolyte membranes (PEM) undergo hygrothermal stress cycling in an operating fuel cell which may lead to pinhole or crack formation and propagation resulting in membrane failure. The fracture energy of a material, measured by fracture tests, is the energy needed for a crack to propagate throughout the material. In this study, the fracture energy of a promising novel fuel cell membrane comprised of a blend of a sulfonated perfluorocyclobutane (PFCB) block copolymer and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) is investigated in various environmental conditions using a knife slit test. Fracture energies determined using the knife slit test have been shown to be several orders of magnitude lower, and therefore closer to the intrinsic fracture energy of a material, than those found by other fracture tests of related membranes. It is believed that the intrinsic fracture energy can give insight into the fracture resistance and durability of the polymer blend membrane. A polymer blend of 70% PFCB and 30% PVDF was tested at dry and nominally 10% relative humidity conditions at 40, 70, and 90°C, as well as at 70°C and nominally 50% relative humidity, to assess the effect of environmental conditions on fracture energy. Results show that the PFCB/PVDF blend had comparable fracture energy to a baseline fuel cell material, Nafion® NRE 211. In addition, the fracture energy of the blend was found to lie between that of the PFCB and PVDF components.

scholarly journals High Resolution Neutron Imaging of Water in the Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell Membrane

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 505-512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Partha P. Mukherjee ◽  
Rangachary Mukundan ◽  
Jacob S. Spendelow ◽  
John R. Davey ◽  
Rodney Borup ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
High Resolution ◽  
Cell Membrane ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Neutron Imaging ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell
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