Numerical simulation and performance evaluation of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Authors

  • Maryam Haghighi * Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Physics & Chemistry, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0129-8219
  • Fatemeh Sharif Hassan Department of Energy Systems, Faculty of Engineering & Technology, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.48313/mtei.v2i1.38

Abstract

In the present study, a comprehensive numerical model of a Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) is developed and validated. The governing equations of mass diffusion, momentum transfer, species transport, heat transfer, and electric charge conservation are solved simultaneously. The simulations are performed using ANSYS FLUENT 15.0 at an operating temperature of 60 °C and atmospheric pressure. Model predictions are validated against experimental polarization data at the same operating conditions, showing good agreement. A mesh and iteration sensitivity analysis indicates that a mesh size of 224,280 cells and 500 iterations are sufficient to achieve a convergence criterion of 10⁻⁶. Increasing the mesh density or iteration number beyond these values increases computational cost without improving accuracy. The numerical results include contours of molar concentrations of hydrogen, oxygen, and water, as well as temperature, enthalpy, and entropy distributions. The results provide detailed insight into transport phenomena and thermodynamic behavior inside the Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell.

Keywords:

Proton exchange membrane fuel cell, Numerical simulation, ANSYS FLUENT, Transport phenomena, Thermodynamic analysis

References

  1. [1] Liu, W., Sun, L., Li, Z., Fujii, M., Geng, Y., Dong, L., & Fujita, T. (2020). Trends and future challenges in hydrogen production and storage research. Environmental science and pollution research, 27(25), 31092–31104. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-09470-0%0A%0A
  2. [2] Zou, C., Li, J., Zhang, X., Jin, X., Xiong, B., Yu, H. (2022). Industrial status, technological progress, challenges, and prospects of hydrogen energy. Natural gas industry b, 9(5), 427–447. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ngib.2022.04.006
  3. [3] Grove, W. R. (1843). On the gas voltaic battery experiments made with a view of ascertaining the rationale of its action and its application to eudiometry. Philosophical transactions of the royal society of london, (133), 91–112. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstl.1843.0009
  4. [4] Siegel, C. (2008). Review of computational heat and mass transfer modeling in polymer-electrolyte-membrane (PEM) fuel cells. Energy, 33(9), 1331–1352. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2008.04.015
  5. [5] Cheddie, D. F., & Munroe, N. D. H. (2006). Three dimensional modeling of high temperature PEM fuel cells. Journal of power sources, 160(1), 215–223. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2006.01.035
  6. [6] Chen, X., Yu, Z., Yang, C., Chen, Y., Jin, C., Ding, Y., Wan, Z. (2021). Performance investigation on a novel 3D wave flow channel design for PEMFC. International journal of hydrogen energy, 46(19), 11127–11139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2020.06.057
  7. [7] Kaiser, R., Ahn, C. Y., Kim, Y. H., & Park, J. C. (2024). Performance and mass transfer evaluation of PEM fuel cells with straight and wavy parallel flow channels of various wavelengths using CFD simulation. International journal of hydrogen energy, 51, 1326–1344. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2023.05.025
  8. [8] Wang, Y., Diaz, D. F. R., Chen, K. S., Wang, Z., & Adroher, X. C. (2020). Materials, technological status, and fundamentals of PEM fuel cells--a review. Materials today, 32, 178–203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mattod.2019.06.005
  9. [9] Pasaogullari, U., & Wang, C. Y. (2010). Modeling and diagnostics of polymer electrolyte fuel cells. Springer Science & Business Media. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-98068-3
  10. [10] Wang, Y., Chen, K. S., Mishler, J., Cho, S. C., & Adroher, X. C. (2011). A review of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells: Technology, applications, and needs on fundamental research. Applied energy, 88(4), 981–1007. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2010.09.030
  11. [11] Larminie, J., Dicks, A., & McDonald, M. S. (2003). Fuel cell systems explained (Vol. 2). J. Wiley Chichester, UK. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118878330?urlappend=%3Futm_source%3Dresearchgate.net%26utm_medium%3Darticle
  12. [12] Demuren, A., & Edwards, R. L. (2020). Modeling proton exchange membrane fuel cells—a review. 50 years of cfd in engineering sciences: A commemorative volume in memory of d. brian spalding, 513–547. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-2670-1_15%0A%0A
  13. [13] Mukherjee, P. P., & Wang, C. Y. (2011). Polymer electrolyte fuel cell modeling--a pore-scale perspective. In Green energy: Basic concepts and fundamentals (pp. 181–221). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84882-647-2_5%0A%0A
  14. [14] Springer, T. E., Zawodzinski, T. A., & Gottesfeld, S. (1991). Polymer electrolyte fuel cell model. Journal of the electrochemical society, 138(8), 2334. https://doi.org/10.1149/1.2085971%0A%0A

Downloads

Published

2025-03-28

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2025): Mechanical Technology and Engineering Insights

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Haghighi, M., & Sharif Hassan, F. (2025). Numerical simulation and performance evaluation of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell. Mechanical Technology and Engineering Insights, 2(1), 56-67. https://doi.org/10.48313/mtei.v2i1.38

Similar Articles

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.