Detecting proton exchange membrane fuel cell hydrogen leak using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy method

•EIS is able to detect the hydrogen leak through an MEA.•Impedance signature increases with the increasing rates of leaks.•The mass transport region increased due to the recombination of oxygen at the cathode.•EIS cannot detect the leak if it is low or located at the downstream of the MEA.

When a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell runs short of hydrogen, it suffers from a reverse potential fault that, when driven by neighboring cells, can lead to anode catalyst degradation and holes in the membrane due to local heat generation. As a result, hydrogen leaks through the electrically-shorted membrane-electrode assembly (MEA) without being reacted, and a reduction in fuel cell voltage is noticed. Such voltage reduction can be detected by using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). To fully understand the reverse potential fault, the effect of hydrogen crossover leakage in a commercial MEA is measured by EIS at different differential pressures between the anode and cathode. Then the signatures of these leaky cells were compared with the signatures of a no-leaky cells at different oxygen concentrations with the same current densities. The eventual intent of this early stage work is to develop an on-board diagnostics system that can be used to detect and possibly prevent cell reversal failures, and to permit understanding the status of crossover or transfer leaks versus time in operation.