Optimization of an open-cathode polymer electrolyte fuel cells stack utilizing Taguchi method

The design of open-cathode polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFC) stacks with forced-convection requires a careful consideration on the geometrical and operating conditions as well as the operating characteristic of PEFC stacks and fan used. This paper evaluates the effect of key geometrical and operating parameters on the stack characteristic and their interactions to the thermal, water and gas managements as well as stack performance. A validated three dimensional model for open-cathode PEFC stack with fan and immediate ambient were solved to evaluate the effect of studied parameters on the stack performance. In tandem, an L27 orthogonal array (OA) of Taguchi matrix of six factors and three level designs to determine the optimum combination of parameters as well as their interactions for high, medium and low voltage operation. The result indicates that fuel cell length plays important role on determining the fuel cell performance in term of system characteristic, current density and net power. Optimum combination of design and operating parameters were obtained with the objective function of maximizing net power generated by stack by taking into account the parasitic loads.