A Fuel Cell Power Supply System Equipped with Artificial Gill Membranes for Underwater Applications.

ABSTRACT: This work proposes a fuel cell power supply system for underwater applications (e.g., autonomous underwater vehicles), where artificial gills, based on a polymer membrane, harvest the required oxygen from the ambient water. In this system, a circulating air-flow continuously supplies a proton exchange membrane fuel cell with oxygen, which is replenished using a polymer membrane. The membrane serves as the interface between the circulating air-flow and the ambient water, preventing water flux while allowing an oxygen flux across the membrane, driven by a partial oxygen pressure gradient. To demonstrate the feasibility of this concept, a prototype system was built based on guidelines derived from a mathematical model that was developed to describe the oxygen transfer process. A computational

SUBMITTER: Merckelbach L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11923934 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature