Considering Two-Phase Flow in Three-Dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulations of Proton Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis Devices

Abstract

Computational studies are employed to construct our understanding of systems and to reduce the monetary and temporal demands of research and development. Proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) devices, with their intricate two-phase transport phenomena and numerous realizable applications, provide an excellent opportunity to utilize computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Toghyani et al.1 modeled the performance of a high-temperature, vapor-fed PEMWE device using CFD simulations, finding fair agreement with prior experimental studies. For low-temperature electrolysis, Nie and Chen2 used a mixture model to study the flow regimes in liquid-fed channels.We employed a CFD model to simulate a PEMWE device, exploring the viability of isothermal and non-isothermal mixture models for a liquid-fed cell. The flow rate was altered to study the change in cell temperature and performance, and the model results were compared to experimental data. Additionally, bulk properties of the porous transport layer at the anode were altered to examine performance effects; such effects were expected to be virtually non-existent in light of experimental observations.3,4 The results demonstrate when a continuum assumption is best utilized to predict electrolysis efficiency.