Abstract The amount and distribution over the active area of current density produced by the stack is a key aspect of a fuel cell performance. The performance of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is affected by many factors, including the operating conditions, flow field and manifold design, and membrane performance. In the present study, a 3D multiphysics model of a PEMFC half-cell focused in the cathode side is developed. Statistical analysis tools are proposed to quantitatively evaluate the current density distribution on the active area of the electrode in order to guarantee a proper distribution while maintaining power density. The analysis was done choosing four design parameters at three different levels on which a fractional factorial experimental design provided by the Taguchi method was applied. Finally the 0.65 V working potential, that guarantees a good power generation and its adequate density current distribution on the active area of the cell, is selected. The best conditions were obtained with geometries of parallel channels, maximum gas diffusion layer porosity, maximum inlet air velocity and minimum vapor fraction, this combination improves 2.31 times the power generated in the worst case analyzed.

中文翻译：

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分析 PEMFC 的阴极侧改变设计参数以优化电流分布和功率密度

摘要 由电堆产生的电流密度在活性区域上的数量和分布是燃料电池性能的一个关键方面。质子交换膜燃料电池 (PEMFC) 的性能受许多因素影响，包括操作条件、流场和歧管设计以及膜性能。在本研究中，开发了一个聚焦在阴极侧的 PEMFC 半电池的 3D 多物理场模型。提出了统计分析工具来定量评估电极活性区域上的电流密度分布，以确保在保持功率密度的同时正确分布。分析是在三个不同水平上选择四个设计参数完成的，在这些参数上应用了田口方法提供的部分因子实验设计。最后是0。选择了 65 V 的工作电位，以保证良好的发电能力及其在电池有源区域上的足够密度电流分布。最佳条件是通过平行通道的几何形状、最大气体扩散层孔隙率、最大入口空气速度和最小蒸汽分数获得的，这种组合将所分析的最坏情况下产生的功率提高了 2.31 倍。