(496e) One Dimensional Theoretical Model for Water Transport in PEM Fuel Cell

Model plays an important role in fuel cell and offer an innovative alternative to current power sources with potential two achieve higher efficiencies with renewable fuels with minimal environmental impact. Model predictions of the performance of the fuel cell are comparison with experimental and data published by Hung et al. (2007) and compared with recent values published by Liu et al.(2007). The mass and heat transport in the model are steady state and one ?dimensional. The development of model consists of various plates and anodic and cathodic reactions takes place at the anode side and cathode side and it relies on various assumptions. The model is consisting of mass transfer model and heat transfer model. The operating conditions considered are various cathode and anode relative humidity (RH) values at 80° C and 2atm. The heat generated in the cell is partly lost to the ambient and partly removed by the cathode and anode fuel streams.In this model only activation and ohmic losses were considered .The numerical tools used to implement the model were MATLAB and EXCEL. A one dimensional water and thermal management model considering the effects of water transport across the membrane, activation, ohmic and concentration overpotentials, pressure drops and current density distribution along the channel of a PEM (proton exchange membrane).Model predictions were successfully compared to experimental and theoretical I-V polarization curves presented by Hung et al.(2007) and JU et al.(2005).Humidified cathode and specially humidified anode streams are needed to avoid the membrane dehydration, particularly at high current densities and it provide suitable operating ranges adequate to different applications for low humidity operation.