A 10 kW class PEM fuel cell stack based on the catalyst-coated membrane (CCM) method

A 60-cell 10 kW class PEM fuel cell stack has been developed and tested. By using the catalyst-coated membrane (CCM) method, a power density of 0.36W/cm2 was reached for a single cell with a 600cm2 active area. The total Pt loading was 0.6mg/cm2 for the anode and cathode catalyst layers. Cyclic voltammogram (CV) tests revealed that the CCM method had a higher Pt utilization when compared to the hydrophobic method. Furthermore, a maximum power of 10.9 kW was reached at an air utilization of 30%. A 400-h performance test showed a ±2V fluctuation of the stack voltages. Coupling the 10 kW class stack with an external humidifier gave a relatively poor result of 6 kW.