HYSYDAYS
1st World Congress of Young Scientists on Hydrogen Energy Systems

ISBN Print: 1-56700-230-7

FUEL CELLS: TECHNICAL ISSUES AND SOLUTIONS

DOI: 10.1615/HYSYDAYS2005.100
pages 69-72

Résumé

Fuel cells are energy sources with excellent economical and environmental potentials that are able to operate in a wide range of stationary, portable and automotive applications. Amongst the several different types of fuel cells that are currently the focus of interest, it is the polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) that is one of the leading candidates for large-scale implementation and commercialisation; however, reductions in cost and improvements in both performance and reliability remain the key obstacles. Much depends principally on the design and properties of components in the heart of the fuel cell, such as the bipolar plates, porous backing, the catalytic layer and the membrane, and the stack. In order to be able to design and construct as cheap, efficient and reliable a PEFC as possible, it is necessary to be able to understand qualitatively and predict quantitatively how it functions; to do this, it is often argued that experimental methods must be complemented by theoretical modelling.
This talk will present some of the approaches in progress at the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, to tightly combine experimental methods, theoretical electrochemistry, fluid dynamics, mathematical modelling and numerical simulation to enhance our knowledge of fuel cell operation.