Effects of Gas Flow Field with Wave-like Form Obstacles on PEM Fuel Cell Performance

Fuel cells can be considered as clean, efficient and economic devices for the next power generation. Flow configuration and operating conditions such as temperature, relative humidity and stoichiometric number are key factors for improving cell performance. The objective of this study is to analyze the effects of the wave-like form obstacles located in the anode gas flow channel on the cell performance. To investigate the performance characteristics of proton exchange membrane fuel cells(PEMFCs), numerical simulations are performed at different operating conditions by using a three dimensional PEM fuel cell with wave-like form obstacles based on FLUENT model. Our simulations indicate that higher current densities can be obtained for gas flow channels with wave-like form obstacles compared to the conventional straight flow channel in proton exchange membrane fuel cell in certain cell voltages. It was recorded that the wave-like form obstacles have a positive effect on the convective heat transfer performance