Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells based on polybenzimidazole (PBI) polymers and phosphoric acid can be operated at temperature between 120 °C and 180 °C. Reactant humidification is not required and CO content up to 1% in the fuel can be tolerated, only marginally affecting performance. This is what makes high-temperature PEM (HTPEM) fuel cells very attractive, as low quality reformed hydrogen can be used and water management problems are avoided. From an experimental point of view, the major research effort up to now was dedicated to the development and study of high-temperature membranes, especially to development of acid-doped PBI type membranes. Some studies were dedicated to the experimental analysis of single cells and only very few to the development and characterization of high-temperature stacks. This work aims to provide more experimental data regarding high-temperature fuel cell stacks, operated with hydrogen but also with different types of reformates. The main design features and the performance curves obtained with a three-cell air-cooled stack are presented. The stack was tested on a broad temperature range, between 120 and 180 °C, with pure hydrogen and gas mixtures containing up to 2% of CO, simulating the output of a typical methanol reformer. With pure hydrogen, at 180 °C, the considered stack is able to deliver electrical power of 31 W at 1.8 V. With a mixture containing 2% of carbon monoxide, in the same conditions, the performance drops to 24 W. The tests demonstrated that the performance loss caused by operation with reformates, can be partially compensated by a higher stack temperature.
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October 2011
This article was originally published in
Journal of Fuel Cell Science and Technology
Research Papers
Design and Experimental Characterization of a High-Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Stack
Rodolfo Taccani
e-mail: taccani@units.it
Rodolfo Taccani
Università degli Studi di Trieste, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica, Via Valerio 10
, Trieste, 34127 Italy
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Rodolfo Taccani
Università degli Studi di Trieste, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica, Via Valerio 10
, Trieste, 34127 Italy
e-mail: taccani@units.it
J. Fuel Cell Sci. Technol. Oct 2011, 8(5): 051007 (5 pages)
Published Online: June 16, 2011
Article history
Received:
March 17, 2010
Revised:
November 23, 2010
Online:
June 16, 2011
Published:
June 16, 2011
Citation
Radu, R., Zuliani, N., and Taccani, R. (June 16, 2011). "Design and Experimental Characterization of a High-Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Stack." ASME. J. Fuel Cell Sci. Technol. October 2011; 8(5): 051007. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4003753
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