An experimental investigation on a modified reversible proton exchange membrane fuel cell performance with varied designs of micro flow channels

Abstract

The present work is an attempt to investigate the impact of six different types of flow channel designs viz.- pin-type, parallel, interdigitated, spiral, serpentine, and parallel serpentine on the hydrogen uptake capacity of a typical porous carbon electrode when employed in an experimental modified reversible PEM fuel cell. In the current research work, stainless steel 316 (SS316) which has a high corrosion resistance was used for the fabrication of bi-polar end plates with varied flow channel designs. The bi-polar end plates of the modified reversible PEM fuel cell were designed and fabricated. A solid electrode using activated carbon (aC) powder and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) binder was fabricated for each set of the cell. newline