Multi-condition sensitivity analysis of proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell using a segmented diagnostic method

Authors

  • Zhi Liu State Key Laboratory of Engines, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China; National Industry-Education Platform for Energy Storage, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China
  • Jinde Hao State Key Laboratory of Engines, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China
  • Zongyang Yu State Key Laboratory of Engines, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China
  • Yanting Ma State Key Laboratory of Engines, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China
  • Kang Wang National Industry-Education Platform for Energy Storage, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China; State Power Investment Corporation Science and Technology Research Institute Co., Ltd., South of Park Future Science City, Beijing 100029, China
Article ID: 459
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DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18686/cest459

Keywords:

proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell; segmented diagnostic method; current density distribution; multi-conditions; sensitivity analysis

Abstract

Understanding the distributions of electrochemical reaction, current density and temperature is important to improve the performance of proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell (PEMEC). Therefore, this study developed a PEMEC testing platform based on a segmented diagnostic technique and systematically analyzed the performance sensitivity and uniformity distribution of the electrolysis cell under varying water flow rates, operating temperatures, and bolt torques. The results indicate that the operating temperature exhibits the highest performance sensitivity while the water flow rate has lowest sensitivity to the PEMEC performance. Increasing water flow rate improves the bubble removal and uniformity distributions of current density and temperature, resulting in improved performance at high current density. A high bolt torque reduces contact resistance and increases uniformity distributions inside electrolyzer, thereby reducing the ohmic losses and output voltage. The elevated temperatures enhance electrochemical kinetics, heat production and uniformity distributions of current density and temperature, indicating performance improvement. The current study consolidates the understanding of influencing mechanisms of different operating conditions on distribution characteristics of multiple physical fields, contributing to enhance electrolyzer performance.

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Published

2025-09-09

How to Cite

Liu, Z., Hao, J., Yu, Z., Ma, Y., & Wang, K. (2025). Multi-condition sensitivity analysis of proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell using a segmented diagnostic method. Clean Energy Science and Technology, 3(3), 459. https://doi.org/10.18686/cest459

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 3 (2025): Recent Advances in Production, Storage, Transportation and Utilization of Hydrogen Energy

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Article

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Copyright (c) 2025 Author(s)

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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