A membraneless microfluidic fuel cell with a hollow flow channel and porous flow-through electrodes

A novel flow channel configuration of a membraneless microfluidic fuel cell (MMFC) with porous flow-through electrodes was investigated numerically. A numerical model was developed for the electrochemical analysis and validated using experimental data. The physical phenomena involved in the microfluidic fuel cell including the flow of the vanadium redox couple (oxidant and fuel), mass transport, and electrochemical reaction kinetics at the electrodes are coupled in the numerical model. Considering the impact of diffusive mixing zone on the performance of MMFC, a hollow structure is proposed for the cross-section of the central flow channel. The hollow structure showed a peak power density, which is higher than those of the H-shaped, simple bridge-shaped, and rectangular channels by 6%, 18%, and 82%, respectively. Highlights Numerical model of an MMFC with flow-through porous electrodes was validated using experimental data. MMFC with flow through electrodes was investigated for various channel configurations. Hollow flow channel coupled with porous electrodes performed best at critical height ratio.

Automated summary

A novel flow channel configuration of a membraneless microfluidic fuel cell (MMFC) with porous flow-through electrodes was numerically investigated, showing that a hollow structure in the central flow channel coupled with porous electrodes performed the best in terms of peak power density.