CN113013435A

CN113013435A - Fuel cell flow passage layout similar to blood vessels and branches on biological mesentery

Info

Publication number: CN113013435A
Application number: CN201911326670.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 黄豪中; 雷涵; 郭晓宇
Original assignee: Guangxi University
Current assignee: Guangxi University
Priority date: 2019-12-20
Filing date: 2019-12-20
Publication date: 2021-06-22
Anticipated expiration: 2039-12-20
Also published as: CN113013435B

Abstract

The invention adopts the following technical scheme that a novel fuel cell flow field which takes biological blood vessels as inspiration and is provided with a layout mode similar to blood vessels and branches distributed on a human mesentery comprises a main trunk of the fuel cell flow field, branches of the main trunk and a reticular flow channel structure similar to capillary vessels. The flow channels are distributed from the center of the bipolar plate to the periphery, go to the right, go to the left, rise separately, fall and are matched with the edge flow channels on the four sides. The uniform water distribution mode of the flow channel is realized, the distribution mode of short path and high active area is adopted, the pressure drop caused by long path is reduced, the electrode product blockage caused by too many turning of the flow channel is relieved, and the problems of insufficient gas supply and the like are avoided.

Description

Fuel cell flow passage layout similar to blood vessels and branches on biological mesentery

Technical Field

The invention belongs to the technical field of fuel cells, and particularly relates to a fuel cell flow field layout taking human mesenteric vessels and branches as inspiration.

Background

The development of clean energy is more and more important on the premise that the world petroleum resources are increasingly scarce and the global warming is increasingly aggravated, the application of hydrogen energy becomes the research focus of the world at present, the fuel cell crosses the heat engine process, the Carnot cycle does not exist, the chemical energy of fuel and oxidant is directly converted into electric energy, the energy conversion efficiency is extremely high, and therefore the fuel cell becomes one of the most promising power sources at present.

In Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs), water is generated in a cathode Catalyst Layer (CL), then transported to the surface of a Membrane Electrode (MEA) through a Gas Diffusion Layer (GDL), and finally flows out of a flow channel. To ensure a high proton conductivity of the Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM), its high water content must be maintained. However, excessive water in the fuel cell flow channels may hinder the effective path of oxygen diffusion, limiting the reaction rate of the Catalyst Layers (CLs), and greatly reducing the cell performance, which is called flooding, which may cause uneven distribution of reactants in the fuel cell, thereby causing problems of uneven current density, local hot spots in the membrane, performance degradation, and material aging. Channel flooding is a main factor restricting the performance of the fuel cell, and directly causes the performance reduction of the fuel cell, so that the water management of the cathode side of the fuel cell is very important for improving the performance of the cell, and the water management and the transport capacity of reactants to a porous gas diffusion layer and a catalytic layer need to be promoted by improving the channel structure and other actions.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a flow channel layout of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell taking biological blood vessels as inspiration, which reduces the pressure drop caused by long path, relieves the electrode product blockage caused by too many turning of the flow channel, avoids the problems of insufficient air supply and the like

The invention adopts the following technical scheme

A fuel cell flow channel using human mesenteric blood vessel and branch as inspiration includes a flow field main channel, main channel branch and a network branch similar to capillary vessel.

The fuel cell is similar to the distribution of multiple branches of an artery blood vessel, and the flow channel is distributed in a way that the center of the flow channel is diverged to the periphery, so that the length of the flow channel is shortened, and the transport distance of reaction products and reactants in the flow channel is shortened.

Eight flow field main channels are uniformly and symmetrically distributed, and four reticular flow channels similar to capillary vessels are symmetrically distributed on four sides of the flow channels

The flow field of the fuel cell is similar to the reticular branches of capillary vessels, so that the active area of the fuel cell is enlarged, and the contact area of a flow channel and a gas diffusion layer is enlarged.

The center of the bipolar plate is provided with a flow channel inlet, and the four corners of the flow field are provided with flow channel outlets, so that the on-way length of the flow channel is shortened.

Air is introduced into the center of the novel flow field which takes the blood vessels and branches on the mesentery of the human body as inspiration, and liquid water of reaction products is discharged from four corners of the flow field.

The depth of the grooves of the whole flow field is 1 mm.

The novel cathode flow channel of the fuel cell with the superior artery blood vessel and branch of the biological mesentery as the design inspiration is characterized in that the novel flow channel layout combines a flow channel structure with a slope surface, the four sides of the novel flow channel are in flow channel forms with trapezoidal section structures, different air inlet and outlet modes achieve short-path layout of the flow channel, the novel cathode flow channel is similar to a mesh flow channel structure distributed with capillary blood vessels to form a distribution mode with a full high-activity area, the novel cathode flow channel aims at reducing pressure drop caused by long-path, electrode product blockage caused by too much turning of the flow channel is relieved, and the problems of insufficient air supply and the like are avoided.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a front view of a novel flow field layout with human superior mesenteric vessels and their branches as inspiration;

wherein: 1. a flow channel inlet 2, a flow channel outlet 3, a flow channel outlet 4, a flow channel outlet 5, a flow channel outlet 6, a reticular flow channel layout 7, a flow field main channel (inclined) 8, a flow field main channel (vertical) 9, a flow field main channel (straight) 10, a bipolar plate

Detailed Description

The flow channel design of the present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all embodiments of the invention are shown. All other embodiments, which can be obtained by a person skilled in the art without any inventive step based on the embodiments of the present invention, are within the scope of the present invention.

In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, as the terms "left", "right", "upper", "lower", "straight", "inclined", "vertical", etc. appear, their indicated orientations or positional relationships are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the drawings, and are only for convenience of describing the invention and simplifying the description, but do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and thus, should not be construed as limiting the present invention. Moreover, the terms "first," "second," "third," and the like, if any, are used for descriptive purposes only. And are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

The invention provides a novel flow channel structure of a fuel cell. This novel design runner includes: novel runner straight line is along the journey section, novel runner convergent structure section, novel runner U type is domatic section.

In the embodiment, the material of the bipolar plate is graphite plate with good electrical and thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance

Further, still include fixing bolt on the bipolar plate, the bipolar plate four corners all is provided with respectively with fixing bolt matched with first, second, third and fourth locating hole to make negative and positive polar plate ability interconnect, such connection is more stable, and the fuel cell pile of a plurality of monomer combinations is also more firm.

As shown in figure 1, the arrangement of the novel flow channel on the bipolar plate is similar to the novel flow channel layout of biological blood vessel distribution, a flow channel inlet is arranged in the center of the bipolar plate, eight main channels equally divide a flow field area, a plurality of flow channels are evenly branched from the upper part and the lower part of the inclined and straight main channels and the left part and the right part of the numerical main channel, a reticular flow field structure similar to a human capillary blood vessel is arranged near the flow channels on the four sides of the outermost periphery of the flow field, and flow channel outlets are arranged at the four corners of the flow field to discharge liquid water of a reaction product.

All parts of the flow field structure taking biological blood vessels as inspiration are mutually and symmetrically distributed.

In this embodiment, the air flow enters from the flow channel inlet 1. Through the various branches, liquid water and air are discharged from the

flow channel outlets

2, 3, 4, 5.

On the basis of the above embodiment, the novel structure has the same cross-sectional area of each branch.

The novel flow channel is formed by engraving a precise numerical control milling machine or a finishing impression machine strictly according to the design size

In this embodiment, the depth of the flow field groove formed by the novel flow channel is 1 mm.

The flow passage cross section of the flow passage can be in one shape along the vertical direction and the extension direction, and is a square cross section of 1mm multiplied by 1 mm.

The flow channels on the bipolar plate are all subjected to smoothing treatment, the contact angle between liquid water and the wall surface of the flow channel is increased, namely, the hydrophobic treatment is carried out, and the liquid water can be discharged out of the flow channels as soon as possible.

The above-mentioned contents are only for illustrating the technical idea of the present invention, and the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereby, and any modification made on the basis of the technical idea of the present invention falls within the protection scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A new type cathode flow channel layout of proton exchange membrane fuel cell is characterized in that the center of the surface of a bipolar plate is provided with a flow channel inlet, the center of the bipolar plate is divided into a plurality of flow channels, and flow channel outlets are arranged from four opposite angles of the bipolar plate.

2. The flow field area flow channel layout is improved, the superior artery and branch of the mesentery of the human body are taken as design inspiration, the layout mode similar to the distribution of artery blood vessels in the human body is set based on the construction standard of a conventional snakelike flow channel structure, the center of the bipolar plate is provided with a flow channel inlet, the flow channel is sent to the periphery in the center of the bipolar plate, and the flow channel goes to the right, the left and the rise and the fall and the branch are matched with the edge flow channel with the four slope surfaces, so that the uniform flow channel water distribution mode is realized.

3. The biological inspiration flow field of claim 1 wherein: the center of the bipolar plate is a flow channel inlet, eight main channels form an octagonal flow channel inlet in the center of the bipolar plate, eight branches are evenly divided into eight areas, and a plurality of branches similar to arterial blood vessels are not evenly divided on the main channels, a reticular flow channel structure similar to capillary blood vessels is arranged near each four sides, and flow channel outlets are arranged at four opposite corners of a square flow field.

4. The novel cathode flow channel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inlet end of the flow channel is an air flow inlet and the outlet end is a liquid water outlet, i.e. the air flow blows the excess liquid water out of the flow channel to avoid flooding.

5. The novel biological inspiration flow channel of claim 1 is distributed as a square flow field on the bipolar plate.

6. A flow passage for use in treating vascular disease as claimed in claim 4, wherein each of the branch portions is symmetrical.

7. The novel flow channel of claim 4 wherein the flow field region is intermediate a fuel cell assembly bipolar plate and a gas diffusion layer.

8. The novel cathode flow channel of fuel cell with superior mesenteric artery and branch as design inspiration according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the new flow channel layout combines a flow channel structure with a slope, the four sides of the flow channel are in a flow channel form with a trapezoidal section structure, different air inlet and outlet modes achieve a short path layout of the flow channel, and the flow channel is similar to a mesh flow channel structure distributed with capillary vessels to form a distribution mode with a full high active area, so as to reduce the pressure drop caused by long path, alleviate the electrode product blockage caused by too much turning of the flow channel, and avoid the problems of insufficient air supply and the like.