Heat transfer through the gas diffusion layer (GDL) is a key process in the design and operation of a PEM fuel cell. The analysis of this process requires determination of the effective thermal conductivity. This transport property differs significantly in the through-plane and in-plane directions due to the anisotropic micro-structure of the GDL. In the present study, a novel test bed that allows the separation of in-plane effective thermal conductivity and thermal contact resistance in GDLs is described. Measurements are performed using Toray carbon paper TGP-H-120 samples for a range of PTFE content at a mean temperature of 65–70°C. The measurements are complemented by a compact analytical model that achieves good agreement with the experimental data. The in-plane effective thermal conductivity is found to be about 12 times higher than the through-plane conductivity and remains approximately constant, k ≈ 17.5 W/mK, over a wide range of PTFE content.
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ASME/JSME 2011 8th Thermal Engineering Joint Conference
March 13–17, 2011
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
Conference Sponsors:
- Heat Transfer Division
ISBN:
978-0-7918-3892-1
PROCEEDINGS PAPER
In-Plane Thermal Conductivity of PEM Fuel Cell Gas Diffusion Layers
Ehsan Sadeghi,
Ehsan Sadeghi
University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
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Ned Djilali,
Ned Djilali
University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
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Majid Bahrami
Majid Bahrami
Simon Fraser University, Surrey, BC, Canada
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Ehsan Sadeghi
University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
Ned Djilali
University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
Majid Bahrami
Simon Fraser University, Surrey, BC, Canada
Paper No:
AJTEC2011-44571, T30032; 9 pages
Published Online:
March 1, 2011
Citation
Sadeghi, E, Djilali, N, & Bahrami, M. "In-Plane Thermal Conductivity of PEM Fuel Cell Gas Diffusion Layers." Proceedings of the ASME/JSME 2011 8th Thermal Engineering Joint Conference. ASME/JSME 2011 8th Thermal Engineering Joint Conference. Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. March 13–17, 2011. T30032. ASME. https://doi.org/10.1115/AJTEC2011-44571
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