Air-breathing miniature planar stack using the flexible printed circuit board as a current collector

To maximize power density, the volume of a fuel cell stack should be reduced by miniaturizing the stack components. In this study, thin flexible printed circuit board was utilized as a current collector in order to reduce an air-breathing monopolar stack's volume. Also, the effects of varying the geometry and opening ratios of the ports to the cathode on stack performance were evaluated in order to determine the optimal cathode structure. Use of the thin current collector and cathode port optimization resulted in an output of 3.5 W from an 18 cm(3) stack (power density of 350 mW/cm(2)). The effects of orientation under passive air-breathing operation were determined to be nearly negligible. All data was measured at ambient pressure and temperature, baseline conditions for mobile fuel cell intended for use in consumer electronics. (C) 2008 International Association for Hydrogen Energy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.