Study on 3D Simulation Performance of Large‐Scale Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell with Distribution Region

Abstract

The majority of the current research examines fuel cell performance metrics using single channels or small‐area flow fields, but fails to take into consideration the actual shape of the flow field of modern proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). The homogeneous distribution of reaction gas concentration and liquid water distribution is examined using 3D computational fluid dynamics simulation on a commercial large‐scale PEMFC with 113.92 cm2 reaction area and distribution region as the object. The results show that the gas distribution in the fluid flow is effectively optimized under the action of the distribution zone, and the maximum concentration error of anode is 4.87%, which is far less than that of cathode, and the higher the flow rate in the flow channel, the stronger the water removal ability; the effects of different working pressure and flow direction of reactant gas on gas concentration in catalytic layer and water content in proton exchange membrane are also studied. The results show that higher working pressure is beneficial to improve the performance of fuel cell, and countercurrent mode is better; finally, the influence of coolant is analyzed, and the results show that coolant can effectively reduce the internal temperature of the fuel cell, which is beneficial to improve the life of the fuel cell.