Abstract
The cell performance and polarization distribution in the horizontal plane of a phosphoric acid fuel cell (PAFC) were studied for thirteen different types of gas flow. In all cases, the potentials of the anode and cathode in the fuel outlet area shifted to positive directions. At 90% utilization of fuel, the potential shift and the cell voltage changed significantly from one type to another. Experimental results show that the cell voltage increased, and the potential shift decreased in the following order; CROSS-FLOW < RETURN-FLOW = CO-FLOW < COUNTER-FLOW < type E2. The extent of the change between various types depended on the following three conditions. (1) The fuel gas has an opportunity to be used twice in the horizontal plane of a cell. (2) The fuel gas flow is in parallel with the air flow. (3) The fuel gas flow is opposite to the air flow. These are requirements for obtaining good and stable performance of a fuel cell. The CROSS-FLOW case has none of these three conditions, the RETURN-FLOW case has the first condition, the CO-FLOW case has the second, the COUNTER-FLOW case has the second and the third conditions, and the best gas flow type (type E2) has all.
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