Abstract
As the power density of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) increases, the problems of internal heat accumulation and non-uniform temperature distribution are becoming significant. In this paper, a novel cooling channel with dimple structures is designed and a three-dimensional PEMFC numerical model is established. When comparing to the conventional channels, the heat transfer performance of dimpled channel is 10% higher than the smooth one, and the pressure loss is almost 13% lower than that of wavy channel. In addition, the optimization of dimple structure parameters is investigated based on the index of uniformity temperature (IUT) and performance evaluation criteria (PEC) of heat transfer. It is found that a diameter-to-depth ratio of 4 is recommended when the dimple diameter is less than 0.80 mm. Furthermore, the clock-wise vortex observed inside the dimple is considered to be the main reason affecting heat exchange. This study will contribute to the design of cooling channels for high-power density PEMFCs in the future.
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