Effects of Inlet Gas Allocations on Performance of an Active Drainage Flow Field Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell

In developing a proton exchange membrane fuel cell, a high current density is encountered, thus requiring a novel flow field with great drainage performance. Our previous study proposed a novel compound flow field called an active drainage flow field with three inlets, which has an excellent output and drainage performance. Furthermore, the influence of muti-inlet reactant gas allocation on the three inlets is discussed in this study. The results showed that the small mass flow in the active drainage (AD) channel causes a waste of active area, while the large mass flow in the AD channel causes under-ribs convection. Considering the output and drainage performance, the 15% AD mass flow case shows the best performance under the high relative humidity investigation.