The effect of wind environment on temperature and performance of an open-cathode proton exchange membrane fuel cell stack

Abstract

In practical applications, the proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell stack is often exposed to wind environment, and the speed and direction of the ambient wind are random. The performance variation of an open-cathode PEM fuel cell under various ambient wind directions and speeds was studied. The results show that when the ambient wind direction is opposite to the cathode reactant or from the side of stack, the stack temperature increases and the stack power decreases finally. Moreover, with the increase in the wind speed, the running time of the stack is shortened significantly. For the ambient wind in the same direction as the cathode gas, the stack power increases at a high current and decreases at a low current. For the given speed and direction of ambient wind, the increased air flow rate of fan could alleviate the interference of ambient wind on the stack performance and temperature. However, while the stack temperature is more than the allowable maximum operating temperature, the stack power declines even though the air flow rate of fan increases.