Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering (설비공학논문집)

The Society of Air-Conditioning and Refrigerating Engineers of Korea (대한설비공학회)
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An Experimental Study of Coolant Operating Conditions in a Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell

고분자연료전지의 냉각수 운전 조건에 관한 실험적 연구

  • Cheong, Seong-Ir (Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University) ;
  • Kim, Tae-Wan (Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University) ;
  • Lee, Chang-Gun (Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University) ;
  • Kim, Doo-Hyun (Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University) ;
  • Ahn, Young-Chull (School of Architecture, Pusan National University) ;
  • Lee, Jae-Keun (Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University) ;
  • Hwang, Yu-Jin (Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University)
  • Published : 2008.08.10
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Abstract

A coolant operating condition in al fuel cell stack was an important factor to determine the temperature distribution which affected the fuel cell performance and relative humidity. In this study, the fuel cell performance was evaluated as a function of the coolant flow rate with the range of $0.1{\sim}0.8$ liter/min cell and the coolant inlet temperature of $20{\sim}82^{\circ}C$. The cell temperature increased with increasing the coolant inlet temperature and with decreasing the coolant flow rate. The coolant inlet temperature and flow rate to maintain the better performance of the fuel cell were in the range of $45{\sim}60^{\circ}C$ and $0.2{\sim}0.4$ liter/min cell, respectively. The experimental results showed that the optimal heat removal rate from the stack by coolant was $0.4{\sim}0.6W/cm^2$ cell.

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References

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