Effect of clamping pressure on ohmic resistance and compression of gas diffusion layers for polymer electrolyte fuel cells

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Effect of clamping pressure on ohmic resistance and compression of gas diffusion layers for polymer electrolyte fuel cells

Mason, TJ; Millichamp, J; Neville, TP; El-Kharouf, A; Pollet, BG; Brett, DJL; (2012) Effect of clamping pressure on ohmic resistance and compression of gas diffusion layers for polymer electrolyte fuel cells. Journal of Power Sources , 219 52 - 59. 10.1016/j.jpowsour.2012.07.021. Green open access

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Abstract

This paper describes the use of an in situ analytical technique based on simultaneous displacement and resistance measurement of gas diffusion layers (GDLs) used in polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs), when exposed to varying compaction pressure. In terms of the losses within fuel cells, the ohmic loss makes up a significant portion. Of this loss, the contact resistance between the GDL and the bipolar plate (BPP) is an important constituent. By analysing the change in thickness and ohmic resistance of GDLs under compression, important mechanical and electrical properties are obtained. Derived parameters such as the ‘displacement factor’ are used to characterise a representative range of commercial GDLs. Increasing compaction pressure leads to a non-linear decrease in resistance for all GDLs. For Toray paper, compaction becomes more irreversible with pressure with no elastic region observed. Different GDLs have different intrinsic resistance; however, all GDLs of the same class share a common compaction profile (change in resistance with pressure). Cyclic compression of Toray GDL leads to progressive improvement in resistance and reduction in thickness that stabilises after ∼10 cycles.

Type:	Article
Title:	Effect of clamping pressure on ohmic resistance and compression of gas diffusion layers for polymer electrolyte fuel cells
Open access status:	An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI:	10.1016/j.jpowsour.2012.07.021
Publisher version:	http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2012.07.021
Language:	English
Additional information:	This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
UCL classification:	UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Chemical Engineering
URI:	https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1372207