Thermal management for a hydrogen-fueled 1-kW PEMFC based on thermoeconomic analysis

Thermal management is a critical issue in optimizing the performance of proton exchange membrane fuels cells (PEMFC). The heat balance between the heat generation in fuel cell stack (FCS) and the heat removal by coolant liquid determines the operating temperature of the PEMFC and the dehydration or flooding condition in FCS. In this study, the amount of water condensed among all the water produced during the electrochemical reaction in FCS of a hydrogen-fueled 1-kW PEMFC at various conditions was determined using a thermoeconomic method called modified productive structure analysis (MOPSA) and the calculated results were compared with observed ones. The amount of the condensed water which should be removed through the cathode channel is dependent crucially on the cooling rate of FCS, which indicates that thermal management for FCS can be done by controlling of the cooling rate of FCS. (C) 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.