Performance Improvement of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell by Modified Flow Field Design

Abstract

The power output of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) is built upon the uniform distribution of reacting gases and the mitigation of flooding of water on the cathode side of the fuel cell. This paper proposes a new flow field, which was modified from conventional serpentine flow fields (SFFs) by dividing the channel into three segments. In each of the segments, the flow channel length was decreased and increased gradually. This new modified flow field (MFF) was compared with SFF, both numerically and experimentally. Numerical and experimental investigations were carried out for an active area of 25 cm2. The MFF created an even distribution of gases and better water management than the SFF on PEMFCs. From the study, it is found that the new MFF improved power output compared to SFFs in numerical simulation and experimental analysis.