Open Access

ARTICLE

Effect of Trapezoidal Obstacle Height and Arrangement Density on the Performance Enhancement of Tri-Serpentine PEMFCs

Hongen Li, Hongjuan Ren^*, Cong Li, Yecui Yan

Mechanical and Automotive Engineering School, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, Shanghai, 201600, China

* Corresponding Author: Hongjuan Ren. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Issues of Hydro and Gas Dynamics, Heat and Mass Transfer in Mechanical Engineering and Energy)

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer 2025, 23(3), 921-941. https://doi.org/10.32604/fhmt.2025.066512

Received 10 April 2025; Accepted 26 May 2025; Issue published 30 June 2025

Abstract

The flow field architecture of the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) cathode critically determines its performance. To enhance PEMFC operation through structural optimization, trapezoidal obstacles were implemented in the cathode flow channels. The height dependence of these obstacles was systematically investigated, revealing that a 0.7 mm obstacle height enhanced mass transfer from channels to the gas diffusion layer (GDL) compared to conventional triple-serpentine designs. This configuration achieved a 12.08% increase in limiting current density alongside improved water management. Subsequent studies on obstacle distribution density identified 75% density as optimal, delivering maximum net power density with 10.6% lower pressure drop than full-density arrangements.

---

Keywords

---