Dataset Information

Ice Formation during PEM Fuel Cell Cold Start: Acceptable or Not?

ABSTRACT: Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell faces the inevitable challenge of the cold start at a sub-freezing temperature. Understanding the underlying degradation mechanisms in the cold start and developing a better starting strategy to achieve a quick startup with no degradation are essential for the wide application of PEM fuel cells. In this study, the comprehensive in situ non-accelerated segmented techniques are developed to analyze the icing processes and obtain the degradation mechanisms under the conditions of freeze-thaw cycle, voltage reversal, and ice formation in different components of PEM fuel cells for different freezing time. A detailed degradation mechanism map in the cold start of PEM fuel cells is proposed to demonstrate how much degradation occurs under different conditions, whether the ice formation is acceptable under the actual operating conditions, and how to suppress the ice formation. Moreover, an ideal starting strategy is developed to achieve the cold start of PEM fuel cells without degradation. This map is highly valuable and useful for researchers to understand the underlying degradation mechanisms and develop the cold start strategy, thereby promoting the commercialization of PEM fuel cells.

SUBMITTER: Liang J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10460847 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Ice Formation during PEM Fuel Cell Cold Start: Acceptable or Not?

Liang Jinqiao J Fan Linhao L Du Qing Q Yin Yan Y Jiao Kui K

Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) 20230621 24

Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell faces the inevitable challenge of the cold start at a sub-freezing temperature. Understanding the underlying degradation mechanisms in the cold start and developing a better starting strategy to achieve a quick startup with no degradation are essential for the wide application of PEM fuel cells. In this study, the comprehensive in situ non-accelerated segmented techniques are developed to analyze the icing processes and obtain the degradation mechanisms u ...[more]

PMID: 37344346

Similar Datasets

Project description:Efforts in design and optimization of catalyst layers for polymer electrolyte fuel cells hinge on mathematical models that link electrode composition and microstructure with effective physico-chemical properties. A pivotal property of these layers and the focus of this work is the proton conductivity, which is largely determined by the morphology of the ionomer. However, available relations between catalyst layer composition and proton conductivity are often adopted from general theories for random heterogeneous media and ignore specific features of the microstructure, e.g., agglomerates, film-like structures, or the hierarchical porous network. To establish a comprehensive understanding of the peculiar structure-property relations, we generated synthetic volumetric images of the catalyst layer microstructure. In a mesoscopic volume element, we modeled the electrolyte phase and calculated the proton conductivity using numerical tools. Varying the ionomer morphology in terms of ionomer film coverage and thickness revealed two limiting cases: the ionomer can either form a thin film with high coverage on the catalyst agglomerates; or the ionomer exists as voluminous chunks that connect across the inter-agglomerate space. Both cases were modeled analytically, adapting relations from percolation theory. Based on the simulated data, a novel relation is proposed, which links the catalyst layer microstructure to the proton conductivity over a wide range of morphologies. The presented analytical approach is a versatile tool for the interpretation of experimental trends and it provides valuable guidance for catalyst layer design. The proposed model was used to analyze the formation of the catalyst layer microstructure during the ink stage. A parameter study of the initial ionomer film thickness and the ionomer dispersion parameter revealed that the ionomer morphology should be tweaked towards well-defined films with high coverage of catalyst agglomerates. These implications match current efforts in the experimental literature and they may thus provide direction in electrode materials research for polymer electrolyte fuel cells.

Dataset Information

Ice Formation during PEM Fuel Cell Cold Start: Acceptable or Not?

Publications

Ice Formation during PEM Fuel Cell Cold Start: Acceptable or Not?

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets