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Coupled FEM and CFD Modeling of Structure Deformation and Performance of PEMFC Considering the Effects of Membrane Water Content

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  • Zizhe Dong

    (State Key Laboratory of Engines, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Yuwen Liu

    (State Key Laboratory of Engines, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Yanzhou Qin

    (State Key Laboratory of Engines, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China)

Abstract

Based on a coupled finite element method (FEM) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model, the structural deformation and performance of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) under different membrane water contents are studied. The water absorption behavior of the membrane is investigated experimentally to obtain its expansion coefficient with water content, and the Young’s modulus of the membrane and catalyst (CL) are obtained through a tensile experiment. The simulation results show that the deformation of the membrane increases with water content, and membrane swelling under the channel is larger than that under the rib, forming a surface bump under the channel. The structural changes caused by the membrane water content have little effect on the performance of PEMFC in the low-current density range; while its influence is significant in the medium- and high-current density range. A medium membrane water content value of 12 achieves the best fuel cell performance due to the balance of membrane resistance and mass transport.

Suggested Citation

  • Zizhe Dong & Yuwen Liu & Yanzhou Qin, 2022. "Coupled FEM and CFD Modeling of Structure Deformation and Performance of PEMFC Considering the Effects of Membrane Water Content," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-19, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:15:y:2022:i:15:p:5319-:d:869052
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Zhiming Zhang & Sai Wu & Kunpeng Li & Jiaming Zhou & Caizhi Zhang & Guofeng Wang & Tong Zhang, 2022. "An Effective Force-Temperature-Humidity Coupled Modeling for PEMFC Performance Parameter Matching by Using CFD and FEA Co-Simulation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-18, November.
    2. Fu, J.L. & Qu, Z.G. & Zhang, J.F. & Zhang, G.B., 2023. "Performance analysis of PEMEC with non-uniform deformation based on a comprehensive numerical framework coupling image recognition and CFD," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 350(C).

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