抄録
Water management in cathode electrode of polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) is essential for high performance operation. The objective of this study is to understand the water transport phenomenon in cathode gas diffusion layer (GDL) of PEFCs by both experimental visualization and numerical simulation. In the experiment, the water condensation process inside the cathode GDL of a PEFC was observed by using water sensitive paper (WSP) and an optical microscope, and the water distribution under the current-collecting ribs and gas channels of the cathode separator was investigated. It was found that the water vapor concentration under the ribs increases immediately after the startup, and the water condensation occurs remarkably. In the simulation, the water distribution in the cathode GDL was predicted by a two-phase flow model, and validated by comparing the calculation data with the visualization results. The simulation results agreed qualitatively with the experimental results.
