Experimental study on the cold-start performance of a gas heating assisted air-cooled proton exchange membrane fuel cell stack

Air-cooled proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) have the advantages of simple structure, low parasitic power, and flexible application scenarios. However, it is difficult to warm up the stack under subzero temperatures because excessive air is used as the cooling medium. In this study, the thermal balance inside an air-cooled PEMFC stack during cold start was theoretically analyzed to explore the relationship between the heating power and ambient temperature. Subsequently, the cold-start performance was tested in a climatic chamber. The results showed that the combination of endplate heating and gas heating is a feasible cold-start measure. The theoretical analysis indicated that only 14 % of the stack rated power for preheating can promote a successful cold start at −30 °C, which has also been validated in the ensuing tests. The test results showed that the temperature uniformity and the cell voltage consistency deteriorate as the ambient temperature decreases, while these two indicators can be improved by increasing the gas heating power. As the ambient temperature decreases, the heating power may become too high, resulting in poor cold-start performance. Therefore, if an air-cooled stack is to be started at extreme low temperatures, further research is needed in terms of flow fields and materials.