In this study, micro-heat pipe arrays (MHPAs) are integrated into air-cooled proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) to enhance their load level and heat dissipation. Experiments are carried out to compare the relevant thermal performance of the stack consisting of 50 units at different operating conditions. A three-dimensional, non-isothermal, and steady-state numerical model of a single cell in the stack is then established to analyze the effect of a MHPA on the electrochemical parameters within the cell. The results of the experiments show that the load level of the stack with MHPAs is 40 % higher than that without MHPAs near the limit temperature. Meanwhile, the average temperature of the stack with MHPAs is 8.3 °C lower than that without MHPAs at 33 A, and MHPAs make the temperature more uniform. Numerical study shows that the decrease of cell temperature by MHPA enables the proton exchange membrane to maintain better hydration and higher current density. At an operating voltage of 0.628 V, the average temperature in the membrane of a single cell with MHPA is 8.8 °C lower than that of PEMFC, and the average water content and current density are 2.01 and 241.06 A/m² higher than those without MHPA, respectively.

在这项研究中，微热管阵列 (MHPA) 被集成到风冷质子交换膜燃料电池 (PEMFC) 中，以提高其负载水平和散热。进行了实验，比较了由 50 个单元组成的电堆在不同运行条件下的相关热性能。然后建立堆中单个电池的三维、非等温和稳态数值模型，以分析 MHPA 对电池内电化学参数的影响。实验结果表明，在极限温度附近，具有 MHPA 的电堆的负载水平比没有 MHPA 的电堆高 40%。同时，在 33 A 时，具有 MHPA 的电堆的平均温度比没有 MHPA 的电堆低 8.3 °C，并且 MHPA 使温度更加均匀。数值研究表明，MHPA降低电池温度使质子交换膜能够保持更好的水合作用和更高的电流密度。在0.628V工作电压下，MHPA单电池膜内平均温度比PEMFC低8.8℃，平均含水量和电流密度分别为2.01和241.06A/m²分别比没有 MHPA 的高。