ISBN 9783843935739

978-3-8439-3573-9, Reihe Verfahrenstechnik

Tomás Cahalan
The Analysis of Membranes for External Humidification of PEM Fuel Cells

131 Seiten, Dissertation Technische Universität München (2018), Softcover, A5

Zusammenfassung / Abstract

The performance of an automotive PEM fuel cell can be improved by humidification of the reactant gases. External membrane humidification is one method of humidification where the water vapour present in the exhaust air stream of the cathode is used to humidify the dry inlet air stream of the cathode.

This work focuses on the analysis of water vapour transfer through a selection of state of the art membranes for external membrane humidification of automotive PEM fuel cells. The analysis uses three approaches which are experimental, 1D modelling and 3D modelling. The experimental approach tests twelve membranes under varying conditions deemed representative of an automotive PEM fuel cell. The 1D and 3D models show how the water vapour transfer varies within the test module.