Optimization of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell membrane electrode assembly
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Publication Details
Author list: Secanell M., Songprakorp R., Djilali N., Suleman A.
Publisher: Springer
Publication year: 2010
Journal: Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization (1615-147X)
Volume number: 40
Issue number: #
Start page: 563
End page: 583
Number of pages: 21
ISSN: 1615-147X
eISSN: 1615-1488
Languages: English-Great Britain (EN-GB)
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Abstract
A computational framework for fuel cell analysis and optimization is presented as an innovative alternative to the time consuming trial-and-error process currently used for fuel cell design. The framework is based on a two-dimensional through-the-channel isothermal, isobaric and single phase membrane electrode assembly (MEA) model. The model input parameters are the manufacturing parameters used to build the MEA: platinum loading, platinum to carbon ratio, electrolyte content and gas diffusion layer porosity. The governing equations of the fuel cell model are solved using Netwon's algorithm and an adaptive finite element method in order to achieve near quadratic convergence and a mesh independent solution respectively. The analysis module is used to solve the optimization problem of finding the optimal MEA composition for maximizing performance. To solve the optimization problem a gradient-based optimization algorithm is used in conjunction with analytical sensitivities. By using a gradient-based method and analytical sensitivities, the framework presented is capable of solving a complete MEA optimization problem with state-of-the-art electrode models in approximately 30 min, making it a viable alternative for solving large-scale fuel cell problems. ฉ 2009 Springer-Verlag.
Keywords
Adaptive finite elements, Analytical sensitivities, Gradient-based optimization, PEM fuel cell