Impact of cyclic mechanical stress on the electrical contact resistance between gas diffusion layer and bipolar plates in Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells
WHEC 2018, 22nd edition of the WORLD HYDROGEN ENERGY CONFERENCE, Rio de Janeiro, BRESIL, 17-/06/2018 - 22/06/2018; and collisions) and the mechanical clamping stress applied during the stack assembly. The internal stresses come from the shrinking and the swelling of the membrane caused by water content and the difference between the thermal expansion coefficients of the cell components. These mechanical stresses have an impact on the global fuel cell's performance and one of the most sensitive cell's components to this pressure is the Gas Diffusion Layer (GDL). This layer, assembled with the membrane electrode assembly, provides the reactant gases, evacuates the produced heat and …
Comparative study by design of experiments of linear and nonlinear constitutive models and geometric parameters effects on PEMFC performances
International audience; Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) appears to be a promising technology to take up the challenges of energy transition, therefore it appears necessary to optimize the systems to use the right amount of raw materials. In our study, we have addressed the mechanical aspects and their impacts on performance of it. More specifically, the main objective of the proposed work is to understand the influence of fuel cell core design and mechanical properties on electrical resistances of internal system contacts. Indeed, electrical contact resistances are one of the important sources of losses and therefore require special attention. To achieve this, a Design of Experim…
Energy management of a thermally coupled fuel cell system and metal hydride tank
International audience; Being produced from renewable energy, hydrogen is one of the most efficient energy carriers of the future. Using metal alloys, hydrogen can be stored and transported at a low cost, in a safe and effective manner. However, most metals react with hydrogen to form a compound called metal hydride (MH). This reaction is an exothermic process, and as a result releases heat. With sufficient heat supply, hydrogen can be released from the as-formed metal hydride. In this work, we propose an integrated power system of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) together with a hydride tank designed for vehicle use. We investigate different aspects for developing metal hydride…
Characterization process to measure the electrical contact resistance of Gas Diffusion Layers under mechanical static compressive loads
AEM2016. International conference on Advanced Energy Materials, University of Surrey, Guildford, ROYAUME-UNI, 12-/09/2016 - 14/09/2016; Recent research has identified the mechanical properties of the fuel cell internal components (in particular, the Gas Diffusion Layers - GDLs) as key-parameters to obtain high final performances of the generator. The mechanical compression modulus of these components, the stability of their mechanical properties with respect to temperature and humidity, and their ability to interact with water have an impact on the electrical contact resistances in the stack and, by consequence, on the overall performance of the electric generator. Reducing the losses by co…