OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTS
Abstract This study investigates the thermal behavior of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells using hydrogen and hydrogen methanol fuels. An extensive 3D model was constructed for the simulation of the temperature, current density, and thermal efficiency distribution, with Nafion EW1100...
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| Format: | Article |
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Sukkur IBA University
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Sukkur IBA Journal of Emerging Technologies |
| Online Access: | https://journal.iba-suk.edu.pk:8089/SIBAJournals/index.php/sjet/article/view/1638 |
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| author | Jawad Ahmed Imdad Ali Sudheer Hussain Abdul Latif Qadir Baksh Waqar Ahmed Muhammad Ahmed |
| author_facet | Jawad Ahmed Imdad Ali Sudheer Hussain Abdul Latif Qadir Baksh Waqar Ahmed Muhammad Ahmed |
| author_sort | Jawad Ahmed |
| collection | DOAJ |
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Abstract
This study investigates the thermal behavior of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells using hydrogen and hydrogen methanol fuels. An extensive 3D model was constructed for the simulation of the temperature, current density, and thermal efficiency distribution, with Nafion EW1100 membranes under high-temperature conditions using COMSOL Multiphysics. Moreover, this study highlights the essential connection between temperature profiles and the performance of the entire fuel cell. However, at a given voltage of 0.4 V and 0.8 V, hydrogen consistently operated at lower temperatures between the Gas Diffusion Layer (GDL), Gas Diffusion Electrode (GDE), and the PEM compared to the hydrogen methanol fuel. For instance, at 0.4 V hydrogen temperatures 4-5 K lower than that of hydrogen, and methanol at 0.8 V, this difference increased to 4-6 K. The temperature differential is indicative of hydrogen's ability to manipulate its heat-generating and dissipating processes more efficiently than PET. This demonstrates hydrogen’s advantages over other fuel cells because the current density correlates with temperature. For all temperatures, hydrogen provides higher current densities than hydrogen-methanol, supporting its usefulness in improving fuel cell efficiency. This increased thermal management not only improves the thermal efficiency of the fuel cell but also prolongs PEM, GDL, and GDE life by decreasing the thermal stress. Hence, from this analysis, it is shown that hydrogen fuel contributed to better thermal management causing superior performance and greater lifetime for PEMFC. This could be more efficient fuel cell systems for the application of advanced membrane technology such as Nafion EW1100.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1b28e2d963a94520828cd5aee684cf28 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2616-7069 2617-3115 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Sukkur IBA University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Sukkur IBA Journal of Emerging Technologies |
| spelling | doaj-art-1b28e2d963a94520828cd5aee684cf282025-08-20T03:25:59ZengSukkur IBA UniversitySukkur IBA Journal of Emerging Technologies2616-70692617-31152025-06-018110.30537/sjet.v8i1.1638OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTSJawad Ahmed0Imdad AliSudheer HussainAbdul LatifQadir BakshWaqar AhmedMuhammad AhmedDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology Nawabshah Abstract This study investigates the thermal behavior of polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells using hydrogen and hydrogen methanol fuels. An extensive 3D model was constructed for the simulation of the temperature, current density, and thermal efficiency distribution, with Nafion EW1100 membranes under high-temperature conditions using COMSOL Multiphysics. Moreover, this study highlights the essential connection between temperature profiles and the performance of the entire fuel cell. However, at a given voltage of 0.4 V and 0.8 V, hydrogen consistently operated at lower temperatures between the Gas Diffusion Layer (GDL), Gas Diffusion Electrode (GDE), and the PEM compared to the hydrogen methanol fuel. For instance, at 0.4 V hydrogen temperatures 4-5 K lower than that of hydrogen, and methanol at 0.8 V, this difference increased to 4-6 K. The temperature differential is indicative of hydrogen's ability to manipulate its heat-generating and dissipating processes more efficiently than PET. This demonstrates hydrogen’s advantages over other fuel cells because the current density correlates with temperature. For all temperatures, hydrogen provides higher current densities than hydrogen-methanol, supporting its usefulness in improving fuel cell efficiency. This increased thermal management not only improves the thermal efficiency of the fuel cell but also prolongs PEM, GDL, and GDE life by decreasing the thermal stress. Hence, from this analysis, it is shown that hydrogen fuel contributed to better thermal management causing superior performance and greater lifetime for PEMFC. This could be more efficient fuel cell systems for the application of advanced membrane technology such as Nafion EW1100. https://journal.iba-suk.edu.pk:8089/SIBAJournals/index.php/sjet/article/view/1638 |
| spellingShingle | Jawad Ahmed Imdad Ali Sudheer Hussain Abdul Latif Qadir Baksh Waqar Ahmed Muhammad Ahmed OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTS Sukkur IBA Journal of Emerging Technologies |
| title | OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTS |
| title_full | OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTS |
| title_fullStr | OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTS |
| title_full_unstemmed | OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTS |
| title_short | OPTIMIZING FUEL CELL MEMBRANE EFFICIENCY THROUGH COMPARATIVE THERMAL ANALYSIS OF HYDROGEN FUEL VARIANTS |
| title_sort | optimizing fuel cell membrane efficiency through comparative thermal analysis of hydrogen fuel variants |
| url | https://journal.iba-suk.edu.pk:8089/SIBAJournals/index.php/sjet/article/view/1638 |
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