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A numerical multiphase CFD simulation for PEMFC with parallel sinusoidal flow fields

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Abstract

Flow field design has an important role in proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) due to its effect on the distribution of pressure, current density, temperature, heat and water management and PEMFC performance. In this paper, the sinusoidal flow field is examined and compared with straight-parallel configuration using a finite volume method based on non-isothermal, steady-state and multiphase model. A set of continuity, momentum, energy, species and electrochemical equations is solved by CFD commercial code with SIMPLE algorithm as a solution approach. The obtained results reveal that at an operating voltage, the maximum velocity and pressure drop for sinusoidal flow field are 1.18 and 6 times more than straight-parallel flow field at GDL/CL interface. Also, it is found that the current density and maximum power density for sinusoidal flow field are 0.65 and 0.32 w cm−2, respectively. Ultimately, the results indicated that the sinusoidal flow field has better performance in compared with straight-parallel flow field.

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Abbreviations

A :

Superficial electrode area (m2)

C k :

Molar concentration of the kth species (mol m−3)

C P :

Specific heat at constant pressure (J kg−1 K−1)

df :

Diameter of pore (m)

\(D_{\text{k}}^{\text{eff}}\) :

Effective diffusion coefficient of the kth component (m2 s−1)

F:

Faraday constant (96,487, C mol−1)

i 0 :

Exchange current density (A m−2)

j :

Current density (A m−2)

k :

Thermal conductivity (W m−1 K−1)

M :

Molecular mass (kg mol−1)

p :

Pressure (Pa)

R :

Universal gas constant (8.314 J mol−1 K−1)

S :

Source term

T :

Temperature (K)

\(\vec{u}\) :

Velocity vector (m s−1)

U :

Uniformity index

γ :

Concentration dependence

α :

Transfer coefficient for reaction

ɛ :

Porosity

φ :

Potential (V)

σ e :

Ionic conductivity of the membrane (S m−1)

\(\sigma_{\text{k}}^{\text{eff}}\) :

Effective ionic conductivity coefficient of the membrane (S m−1)

K :

Permeability (m2)

λ :

Relative humidity of the membrane

μ :

Dynamic viscosity (Pa s)

ρ :

Density (kg m−3)

η :

Over potential (V)

ς :

Specific active surface area (m−1)

avg:

Average

a:

Anode

c:

Cathode

e:

Membrane

f:

Fluid

oc:

Open circuit

ref:

Reference

s:

Solid

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Isfahan, Hezar Jerib Ave, Isfahan, 81746-73441, Iran

    Seyed Ali Atyabi & Ebrahim Afshari

Authors
  1. Seyed Ali Atyabi
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  2. Ebrahim Afshari
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Correspondence to Ebrahim Afshari.

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Atyabi, S.A., Afshari, E. A numerical multiphase CFD simulation for PEMFC with parallel sinusoidal flow fields. J Therm Anal Calorim 135, 1823–1833 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7270-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7270-3

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