PEMFC-Stack-Model

A reduced dimensional numerical model to simulate the performance of PEM fuel cell stacks developed in Python 3.6 utilizing the numerical libraries NumPy and SciPy.

Geometric Layout

Features

• Physical stack domain is discretized into two dimensions:

  • through each cell in the direction of the electrical current (current-direction)
  • along the flow direction of each channel (flow-direction)

• Calculation of the reactant flow distribution into the cells based on the geometry of headers and channels

• Local current distribution along the flow- and current-direction due to:

  • reactant transport within the channels and the porous media
  • temperature distribution
  • reaction kinetics and voltage losses according to Kulikovsky (2013)

• Temperature distribution along the flow- and current-direction with a discretization in the current-direction (through plane) in five nodes at the interfaces of:

  • anodic and cathodic bipolar plates (BPP-BPP)
  • anodic bipolar plate and gas diffusion electrode (BPP-GDE, Ano)
  • anodic gas diffusion electrode and membrane (GDE-Mem, Ano)
  • cathodic gas diffusion electrode and membrane (GDE-Mem, Cat)
  • cathodic bipolar plate and gas diffusion electrode (BPP-GDE, Cat)

Minimum requirements

• NumPy 1.14.3
• SciPy 1.1.0
• Matplotlib 2.2.2

Usage

Download the repository, review settings in the pemfc/settings folder (ouput.py, geometry.py, operating_conditons.py, physical_properties.py, simulation.py). Then execute

python -m pemfc.main_app

for the CLI app, or

python -m pemfc.gui_app

for the GUI app from repository folder with your Python interpreter. Input parameters can be adjusted via GUI or in the corresponding files in the pemfc/settings folder. If not otherwise specified, a folder called "output" will be created at the end of a simulation run, which contains the results in various data files and plots.

Implementation

References

Stack discretization, temperature coupling, reactant transport according to:

Chang, Paul, Gwang-Soo Kim, Keith Promislow, and Brian Wetton. “Reduced Dimensional Computational Models of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell Stacks.” Journal of Computational Physics 223, no. 2 (May 2007): 797–821. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcp.2006.10.011.

Membrane models as described in:

Springer, T. E., T. A. Zawodzinski, and S. Gottesfeld. “Polymer Electrolyte FuelCell Model.” Journal of The Electrochemical Society 138, no. 8 (August 1, 1991): 2334–42. https://doi.org/10.1149/1.2085971.

Kamarajugadda, Sai, and Sandip Mazumder. “On the Implementation of Membrane Models in Computational Fluid Dynamics Calculations of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells.” Computers & Chemical Engineering 32, no. 7 (July 2008): 1650–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compchemeng.2007.08.004.

Nguyen, Trung V., and Ralph E. White. “A Water and Heat Management Model for Proton‐Exchange‐Membrane Fuel Cells.” Journal of The Electrochemical Society 140, no. 8 (August 1, 1993): 2178–86. https://doi.org/10.1149/1.2220792.

Xu, Feina, Sébastien Leclerc, Didier Stemmelen, Jean-Christophe Perrin, Alain Retournard, and Daniel Canet. “Study of Electro-Osmotic Drag Coefficients in Nafion Membrane in Acid, Sodium and Potassium Forms by Electrophoresis NMR.” Journal of Membrane Science 536 (August 2017): 116–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.memsci.2017.04.067.

Peng, Zhe, Arnaud Morin, Patrice Huguet, Pascal Schott, and Joël Pauchet. “In-Situ Measurement of Electroosmotic Drag Coefficient in Nafion Membrane for the PEMFC.” The Journal of Physical Chemistry B 115, no. 44 (November 10, 2011): 12835–44. https://doi.org/10.1021/jp205291f.

Manifold model and flow distribution based on:

Koh, Joon-Ho, Hai-Kyung Seo, Choong Gon Lee, Young-Sung Yoo, and Hee Chun Lim. “Pressure and Flow Distribution in Internal Gas Manifolds of a Fuel-Cell Stack.” Journal of Power Sources 115, no. 1 (March 2003): 54–65. https://doi. org/10.1016/S0378-7753(02)00615-8.

Electrochemical reaction kinetics and transport losses according to:

Kulikovsky, A. A. “A Physically–Based Analytical Polarization Curve of a PEM Fuel Cell.” Journal of the Electrochemical Society 161, no. 3 (December 28, 2013): F263–70. https://doi.org/10.1149/2.028403jes.