Abstract
A high-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell (HT-PEMFC) conventionally uses a planar design with carbon-based substrates as the gas diffusion layer (GDL) materials. However, the metal-based substrates allow for alternative designs. In this study, the applicability of porous thin-walled tubular elements made of 316L stainless steel as the anode GDL in a multi-layer tubular HT-PEMFC was investigated. The anode GDLs were fabricated via powder bed fusion using a laser beam (PBF-LB) process with defined porosities (14% and 16%). The morphology of the porous elements was compared using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs. The influence of the porosity on the fuel cell performance was evaluated through electrochemical characterization and a short-term stability test (45 h) in a commercial test station operated at 160 °C and ambient pressure, using hydrogen as the fuel and air as the oxidant. The results showed that the fuel cell manufactured upon the anode GDL with a porosity of 16% had a higher performance with a peak power density of 329.25 W/m2 after 5 h of operation at 125.52 A/m2 and a voltage degradation rate of 0.511 mV/h over the stability test period. Moreover, this work indicates that additive manufacturing could be a useful tool for further fuel cell development.
Highlights
The proton exchange membrane or polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) can be classified based on the working temperature into low temperature (LT)-PEMFCand high temperature (HT)-PEMFC
This study presents an investigation of novel 316L stainless steel gas diffusion layer (GDL) produced using powder bed fusion using a laser beam (PBF-LB) with different porosities on tubular HT-PEMFC under concentrated phosphoric acid (H3 PO4 ) conditions
The anode catalyst layer was sprayed onto the PBF-LB-produced porous electrode (GDL-based method) and the cathode layer was sprayed on the membrane; the platinum loadings were 0.57 ± 0.01 mg/cm2 and 0.44 ± 0.03 mg/cm2, respectively
Summary
The proton exchange membrane or polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) can be classified based on the working temperature into low temperature (LT)-PEMFC (usually below 80 ◦ C). There are still some key issues and challenges that have delayed the expansion of this type of fuel cell, for instance, membrane electrode assembly (MEA) degradation [2] These characteristics have motivated researchers all around the globe to investigate and optimize HT-PEMFC systems. Its austenitic crystalline structure and the inclusion of alloys, such as molybdenum and nickel, improve the chemical resistance relative to other stainless steel groups In this respect, Abele et al [14] reported that 316L material has a significantly lower mass loss than 17-4 PH. This study presents an investigation of novel 316L stainless steel GDLs (hereafter referred to as anode GDLs) produced using PBF-LB with different porosities on tubular HT-PEMFC under concentrated phosphoric acid (H3 PO4 ) conditions. Were characterized through current-voltage measurements (polarization curve), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and short-term stability tests
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