MRI Investigation of Water Transport Mechanism in a Membrane under Elevated Temperature Condition with Relative Humidity and Current Density Variation

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 1035-1040 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomofumi Ikeda ◽  
Tetsuya Koido ◽  
Shohji Tsushima ◽  
Shuichiro Hirai
Author(s):  
Jaemin Son ◽  
Sangseok Yu

In a PEMFC (Proton electrolyte membrane fuel cell), water transport mechanism inside the membrane is very important in performance and durability of whole fuel cell stack. Diffusion of water through the membrane is governed by humidity conditions of outer layers and the humidity conditions of gases depend on temperature, pressure and operating pressures. Since those parameters are varied non-linearly, it is necessary to investigate water transport mechanism by concentration difference between both sides of membrane. In this study, water contents of Nafion® membrane is measured in terms of relative humidity, temperatures, and operating pressure. Water diffusion is also measured at different pressures in both sides. Test chamber is designed to fix membrane in the middle of chamber and the membrane separates chambers in two spaces. Parametric study is conducted to measure the water contents of membranes in terms of temperatures 30°C, 50°C, 70°C, 90°C and 0 to 100% relative humidity. When the water diffusivity is calculated by measured data, the water concentrations in both sides are determined by harmonic averages of inlet and exit water humidity. Additionally, water flux is also investigated in terms of both sides humidity, operating pressure and temperatures. As a result, the water diffusion coefficient was explained by the operating temperature and the relative humidity and operating pressures.


2008 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Hun Park ◽  
Jerald A. Caton

The effects of the environmental conditions and the channel depth for an air-breathing polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell were investigated experimentally. The fuel cell used in this work included a membrane and electrode assembly, which possessed an active area of 25 cm2 with Nafion® 117 membrane. Triple serpentine designs for the flow fields with two different flow depths were used in this research. The experimental results indicated that the relative humidity and temperature play an important role with respect to fuel cell performance. The fuel cell needs to be operated at least 20 min to obtain stable performance. When the shallow flow field was used, the performance increased dramatically for low humidity and slightly for high humidity. The current density was obtained around only 120 mA/cm2 at 30°C with an 80% relative humidity, which was nearly double the performance for the deep flow field. The minimum operating temperature for an air-breathing fuel cell would be 20°C. When it was 10°C at 60% relative humidity, the open circuit voltage dropped to around 0.65 V. The fuel cell performance improved with increasing relative humidity from 80% to 100% at high current density.


Author(s):  
Yuichiro Tabuchi ◽  
Takeshi Shiomi ◽  
Osamu Aoki ◽  
Norio Kubo ◽  
Kazuhiko Shinohara

Heat and water transport in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) has considerable impacts on cell performance under high current density which is desired in PEMFC for automobiles. In this study, the impact of rib/channel, heat and water transport on cell performance under high current density was investigated by experimental evaluation of liquid water distribution and numerical validation. Liquid water distribution between rib and channel is evaluated by Neutron Radiography. In order to neglect the effect of liquid water in channel and the distribution of oxygen and hydrogen concentration distribution along with channel length, the differential cell was used in this study. Experimental results show that liquid water under channel was dramatically changed with Rib/Channel width. From numerical study, it is found that the change of liquid water distribution was strongly affected by temperature distribution between rib and channel. In addition, not only heat transport but also water transport through membrane also significantly affected cell performance under high current density operation. From numerical validation, it is concluded that this effect on cell performance under high current density could be due to the enhancement of back-diffusion of water through membrane.


2021 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 52-58
Author(s):  
Natalya P. Bodryakova

This article deals with the problem of preserving the properties of a semi-finished fur product under the influence of a biological factor during the storage of raw materials. The characteristic features of the biodegradation of untreated rabbit skins during storage at elevated temperature and relative humidity are identified and described. A complex characteristic of a semi-finished fur product developed from raw materials of various degrees of microbiological spoilage is given. The author offers a point scale of assessment dynamics of the processes of destruction of fur raw materials and a point assessment of the organoleptic indicators of the semi-finished product was developed. As a result of comprehensive studies, it was found that the degree of damage to the fur raw materials being processed affects the decrease in the stability of the structure and strength properties of the finished semi-finished product.


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