Development of an Air-Open PEM Fuel Cell

Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells provide significant advantages over conventional power systems. They operate at very high efficiencies (greater than 50% direct conversion and at system efficiencies which can exceed 40%), generate no emissions, are responsive to rapid start up and load changes, and operate near ambient temperature and pressure. Units have been developed for and applied to a variety of vehicle and stationary applications. PEM fuel cells, however, have achieved limited success due to their size and weight. This proposed program will develop a light weight, efficient and cost effective fuel cell by using alternatives to conventional compressed, planar PEM fuel cell geometry. Present PEM fuel cells rely on a planar electrode and bi-polar collector plate design. In order to work efficiently, the cells operate above ambient pressure. This requires that the cell assembly have the structural strength to withstand operation at pressure. The designs proposed in this program utilize radically new geometrical configurations to remove the need for operation at high pressure (greater than 10 psi). Structures under consideration include cylindrical and monopolar, planar designs. Benefits of the new designs are removal of the need for heavy assembly and compression hardware and reduction of the material requirements for the internal cell structure.