IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/appene/v180y2016icp757-778.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A review of cell-scale multiphase flow modeling, including water management, in polymer electrolyte fuel cells

Author

Listed:
  • Andersson, M.
  • Beale, S.B.
  • Espinoza, M.
  • Wu, Z.
  • Lehnert, W.

Abstract

The PEFC has emerged as the most viable fuel cell type for automotive and some portable applications, and also has potential back-up power unit applications due to its low operating temperature, comparative simplicity of construction, high power density, and ease of operation. In spite of tremendous scientific advances, as well as engineering progress over the last few decades, the commercialization of PEFCs remains unrealized, owing primarily to economic viability associated with the high prices of materials and components and technical problems relating primarily to water management. The difficulty in addressing the water management issues lies mostly in the two-phase multi-component flow involving phase-change in porous media, coupled heat and mass transfer, interactions between the porous layers and gas channel (GC) and the complex relationship between water content and cell performance. Due to the low temperature of operation, water generated by the electrochemical reactions often condenses into liquid form, potentially flooding the gas diffusion layer (GDL), GC or other components. Insight into the fundamental processes of liquid water evolution and transport is still lacking, preventing further enhanced PEFC development.

Suggested Citation

  • Andersson, M. & Beale, S.B. & Espinoza, M. & Wu, Z. & Lehnert, W., 2016. "A review of cell-scale multiphase flow modeling, including water management, in polymer electrolyte fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 757-778.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:180:y:2016:i:c:p:757-778
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2016.08.010
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261916310972
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.apenergy.2016.08.010?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pei, Pucheng & Chen, Huicui, 2014. "Main factors affecting the lifetime of Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cells in vehicle applications: A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 60-75.
    2. Siegel, C., 2008. "Review of computational heat and mass transfer modeling in polymer-electrolyte-membrane (PEM) fuel cells," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 33(9), pages 1331-1352.
    3. Andersson, Martin & Yuan, Jinliang & Sundén, Bengt, 2010. "Review on modeling development for multiscale chemical reactions coupled transport phenomena in solid oxide fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 87(5), pages 1461-1476, May.
    4. Sharaf, Omar Z. & Orhan, Mehmet F., 2014. "An overview of fuel cell technology: Fundamentals and applications," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 810-853.
    5. Perng, Shiang-Wuu & Wu, Horng-Wen, 2015. "A three-dimensional numerical investigation of trapezoid baffles effect on non-isothermal reactant transport and cell net power in a PEMFC," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 143(C), pages 81-95.
    6. Cao, Tao-Feng & Lin, Hong & Chen, Li & He, Ya-Ling & Tao, Wen-Quan, 2013. "Numerical investigation of the coupled water and thermal management in PEM fuel cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 1115-1125.
    7. Carton, J.G. & Lawlor, V. & Olabi, A.G. & Hochenauer, C. & Zauner, G., 2012. "Water droplet accumulation and motion in PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) fuel cell mini-channels," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 63-73.
    8. Wang, Yun & Chen, Ken S. & Mishler, Jeffrey & Cho, Sung Chan & Adroher, Xavier Cordobes, 2011. "A review of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells: Technology, applications, and needs on fundamental research," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(4), pages 981-1007, April.
    9. Das, Prodip K. & Li, Xianguo & Liu, Zhong-Sheng, 2010. "Effective transport coefficients in PEM fuel cell catalyst and gas diffusion layers: Beyond Bruggeman approximation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 87(9), pages 2785-2796, September.
    10. Ko, Johan & Ju, Hyunchul, 2012. "Comparison of numerical simulation results and experimental data during cold-start of polymer electrolyte fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 364-374.
    11. Xing, Lei & Das, Prodip K. & Song, Xueguan & Mamlouk, Mohamed & Scott, Keith, 2015. "Numerical analysis of the optimum membrane/ionomer water content of PEMFCs: The interaction of Nafion® ionomer content and cathode relative humidity," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 242-257.
    12. Ling, C.Y. & Cao, H. & Chen, Y. & Han, M. & Birgersson, E., 2016. "Compact open cathode feed system for PEMFCs," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 670-675.
    13. Mengbo Ji & Zidong Wei, 2009. "A Review of Water Management in Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells," Energies, MDPI, vol. 2(4), pages 1-50, November.
    14. Yao, Shi-Chune & Tang, Xudong & Hsieh, Cheng-Chieh & Alyousef, Yousef & Vladimer, Michael & Fedder, Gary K. & Amon, Cristina H., 2006. "Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS)-based micro-scale direct methanol fuel cell development," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 636-649.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. De las Heras, A. & Vivas, F.J. & Segura, F. & Redondo, M.J. & Andújar, J.M., 2018. "Air-cooled fuel cells: Keys to design and build the oxidant/cooling system," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 1-20.
    2. Tsai, Shang-Wen & Chen, Yong-Song, 2017. "A mathematical model to study the energy efficiency of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell with a dead-ended anode," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 151-159.
    3. Min, Xiaoteng & Xia, Junjie & Zhang, Xiongwen & Ding, Kunpeng, 2022. "Study on the output performance of the proton exchange membrane fuel cells using print circuit board," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 197(C), pages 359-370.
    4. Margherita Bulgarini & Augusto Della Torre & Andrea Baricci & Amedeo Grimaldi & Luca Marocco & Riccardo Mereu & Gianluca Montenegro & Angelo Onorati, 2024. "Computational Fluid Dynamic Investigation of Local Flow-Field Conditions in Lab Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells to Identify Degradation Stressors and Performance Enhancers," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-27, July.
    5. Yuan, Hao & Dai, Haifeng & Wei, Xuezhe & Ming, Pingwen, 2020. "A novel model-based internal state observer of a fuel cell system for electric vehicles using improved Kalman filter approach," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 268(C).
    6. Ferreira, Rui B. & Falcão, D.S. & Oliveira, V.B. & Pinto, A.M.F.R., 2017. "1D+3D two-phase flow numerical model of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 474-495.
    7. Yan, Xiaohui & Lin, Chen & Zheng, Zhifeng & Chen, Junren & Wei, Guanghua & Zhang, Junliang, 2020. "Effect of clamping pressure on liquid-cooled PEMFC stack performance considering inhomogeneous gas diffusion layer compression," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    8. Wang, Qianqian & Tang, Fumin & Li, Bing & Dai, Haifeng & Zheng, Jim P. & Zhang, Cunman & Ming, Pingwen, 2022. "Investigation of the thermal responses under gas channel and land inside proton exchange membrane fuel cell with assembly pressure," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 308(C).
    9. Lin, Chen & Yan, Xiaohui & Wei, Guanghua & Ke, Changchun & Shen, Shuiyun & Zhang, Junliang, 2019. "Optimization of configurations and cathode operating parameters on liquid-cooled proton exchange membrane fuel cell stacks by orthogonal method," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 253(C), pages 1-1.
    10. Soopee, Asif & Sasmito, Agus P. & Shamim, Tariq, 2019. "Water droplet dynamics in a dead-end anode proton exchange membrane fuel cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 233, pages 300-311.
    11. Wang, Luwen & Yuan, Zhaoxia & Wen, Fei & Cheng, Yuhua & Zhang, Yufeng & Wang, Gaofeng, 2018. "A bipolar passive DMFC stack for portable applications," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 587-593.
    12. Li, Wenkai & Zhang, Qinglei & Wang, Chao & Yan, Xiaohui & Shen, Shuiyun & Xia, Guofeng & Zhu, Fengjuan & Zhang, Junliang, 2017. "Experimental and numerical analysis of a three-dimensional flow field for PEMFCs," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 195(C), pages 278-288.
    13. Lin, Zi & Liu, Xiaolei & Lao, Liyun & Liu, Hengxu, 2020. "Prediction of two-phase flow patterns in upward inclined pipes via deep learning," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).
    14. Wong, A.K.C. & Ge, N. & Shrestha, P. & Liu, H. & Fahy, K. & Bazylak, A., 2019. "Polytetrafluoroethylene content in standalone microporous layers: Tradeoff between membrane hydration and mass transport losses in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 240(C), pages 549-560.
    15. Xu, Liangfei & Fang, Chuan & Li, Jianqiu & Ouyang, Minggao & Lehnert, Werner, 2018. "Nonlinear dynamic mechanism modeling of a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell with dead-ended anode considering mass transport and actuator properties," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 230(C), pages 106-121.
    16. Zhang, S. & Reimer, U. & Beale, S.B. & Lehnert, W. & Stolten, D., 2019. "Modeling polymer electrolyte fuel cells: A high precision analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 233, pages 1094-1103.
    17. Suprava Chakraborty & Devaraj Elangovan & Karthikeyan Palaniswamy & Ashley Fly & Dineshkumar Ravi & Denis Ashok Sathia Seelan & Thundil Karuppa Raj Rajagopal, 2022. "A Review on the Numerical Studies on the Performance of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) Flow Channel Designs for Automotive Applications," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-21, December.
    18. Purnima, P. & Jayanti, S., 2017. "Water neutrality and waste heat management in ethanol reformer - HTPEMFC integrated system for on-board hydrogen generation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 169-179.
    19. Rolando Pedicini & Marcello Romagnoli & Paolo E. Santangelo, 2023. "A Critical Review of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell Systems for Automotive Applications: Components, Materials, and Comparative Assessment," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(7), pages 1-28, March.
    20. Xing, Lei & Shi, Weidong & Su, Huaneng & Xu, Qian & Das, Prodip K. & Mao, Baodong & Scott, Keith, 2019. "Membrane electrode assemblies for PEM fuel cells: A review of functional graded design and optimization," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 445-464.
    21. Chowdhury, Mohammad Ziauddin & Timurkutluk, Bora, 2018. "Transport phenomena of convergent and divergent serpentine flow fields for PEMFC," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 104-117.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Wang, Junye, 2015. "Theory and practice of flow field designs for fuel cell scaling-up: A critical review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 640-663.
    2. Wu, Horng-Wen, 2016. "A review of recent development: Transport and performance modeling of PEM fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 81-106.
    3. Xing, Lei & Cai, Qiong & Xu, Chenxi & Liu, Chunbo & Scott, Keith & Yan, Yongsheng, 2016. "Numerical study of the effect of relative humidity and stoichiometric flow ratio on PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cell performance with various channel lengths: An anode partial flooding modelli," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 631-645.
    4. Wang, Junye, 2015. "Barriers of scaling-up fuel cells: Cost, durability and reliability," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 509-521.
    5. Li, Wenkai & Zhang, Qinglei & Wang, Chao & Yan, Xiaohui & Shen, Shuiyun & Xia, Guofeng & Zhu, Fengjuan & Zhang, Junliang, 2017. "Experimental and numerical analysis of a three-dimensional flow field for PEMFCs," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 195(C), pages 278-288.
    6. Abdollahzadeh, M. & Ribeirinha, P. & Boaventura, M. & Mendes, A., 2018. "Three-dimensional modeling of PEMFC with contaminated anode fuel," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 939-959.
    7. Tzelepis, Stefanos & Kavadias, Kosmas A. & Marnellos, George E. & Xydis, George, 2021. "A review study on proton exchange membrane fuel cell electrochemical performance focusing on anode and cathode catalyst layer modelling at macroscopic level," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    8. Saeidfar, Asal & Yesilyurt, Serhat, 2023. "Numerical investigation of the effects of catalyst layer composition and channel to rib width ratios for low platinum loaded PEMFCs," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 339(C).
    9. Huo, Sen & Cooper, Nathanial James & Smith, Travis Lee & Park, Jae Wan & Jiao, Kui, 2017. "Experimental investigation on PEM fuel cell cold start behavior containing porous metal foam as cathode flow distributor," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 101-114.
    10. Jouin, Marine & Bressel, Mathieu & Morando, Simon & Gouriveau, Rafael & Hissel, Daniel & Péra, Marie-Cécile & Zerhouni, Noureddine & Jemei, Samir & Hilairet, Mickael & Ould Bouamama, Belkacem, 2016. "Estimating the end-of-life of PEM fuel cells: Guidelines and metrics," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 87-97.
    11. Wong, A.K.C. & Ge, N. & Shrestha, P. & Liu, H. & Fahy, K. & Bazylak, A., 2019. "Polytetrafluoroethylene content in standalone microporous layers: Tradeoff between membrane hydration and mass transport losses in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 240(C), pages 549-560.
    12. Afra, Mehran & Nazari, Mohsen & Kayhani, Mohammad Hasan & Sharifpur, M. & Meyer, J.P., 2019. "3D experimental visualization of water flooding in proton exchange membrane fuel cells," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 967-977.
    13. Alipour Moghaddam, Jafar & Parnian, Mohammad Javad & Rowshanzamir, Soosan, 2018. "Preparation, characterization, and electrochemical properties investigation of recycled proton exchange membrane for fuel cell applications," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 699-709.
    14. Rostami, Leila & Haghshenasfard, Masoud & Sadeghi, Morteza & Zhiani, Mohammad, 2022. "A 3D CFD model of novel flow channel designs based on the serpentine and the parallel design for performance enhancement of PEMFC," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    15. Qiao, Jia Nan & Guo, Hang & Ye, Fang & Chen, Hao, 2024. "A nonlinear contraction channel design inspired by typical mathematical curves: Boosting net power and water discharge of PEM fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 357(C).
    16. He, Wenbin & Liu, Ting & Ming, Wuyi & Li, Zongze & Du, Jinguang & Li, Xiaoke & Guo, Xudong & Sun, Peiyan, 2024. "Progress in prediction of remaining useful life of hydrogen fuel cells based on deep learning," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    17. Oh, Hwanyeong & Park, Jaeman & Min, Kyoungdoug & Lee, Eunsook & Jyoung, Jy-Young, 2015. "Effects of pore size gradient in the substrate of a gas diffusion layer on the performance of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 186-193.
    18. Chen, Huicui & Pei, Pucheng & Song, Mancun, 2015. "Lifetime prediction and the economic lifetime of Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cells," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 154-163.
    19. Chen, Qin & Zhang, Guobin & Zhang, Xuzhong & Sun, Cheng & Jiao, Kui & Wang, Yun, 2021. "Thermal management of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells: A review of cooling methods, material properties, and durability," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 286(C).
    20. Zhang, Jikai & Wang, Changjian & Zhang, Aifeng, 2022. "Experimental study on temperature and performance of an open-cathode PEMFC stack under thermal radiation environment," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 311(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:180:y:2016:i:c:p:757-778. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/405891/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.