Advances in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Pressure Transfer Analysis

Researchers from Tongji University in Shanghai, China have made significant progress in analyzing the pressure transfer mechanism in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), a crucial component in hydrogen energy systems. By developing a novel pressure transfer model combining contact mechanics and the superposition principle, the team aimed to enhance the accuracy of theoretical-experimental comparisons. The research, supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Shanghai Science and Technology Planning Project, has provided valuable insights into the behavior of PEMFCs under different operating conditions.

Key Takeaways:

• The researchers developed a pressure transfer model that combines contact mechanics with the superposition principle to analyze both contact pressure and its uniformity at the interface of PEMFCs.
• Experimental results showed that a compression speed of 0.05 mm/s ensured experimental precision, with a maximum data conversion error of 4.8%.
• Theoretical analysis of contact pressure and its non-uniformity across the PEMFC stack demonstrated strong agreement with simulation and experimental trends, indicating that as stack depth increases, average contact pressure rises and distribution becomes more uniform.
• Initially, due to the overshoot behavior caused by the loading speed, the discrepancies between theoretical, simulation, and experimental data were 29.6% and 20.3%, respectively. After refining the coefficient F of the superposition method, these errors reduced to 15.0-11.4% (simulation) and 14.8-1.0% (experiment).
• Further analysis confirmed that pressure distribution becomes increasingly uniform as stack depth increases, consistent with simulation and experimental observations.
• The research has been peer-reviewed and published in the International Journal of Hydrogen Energy.
• Additional authors for this research include Wei Jiang, Yong Li, Kai Zhang, Xing Huang, Ke Song, and Yue Kai.

Statistics:

• Maximum data conversion error: 4.8%
• Compression speed for experimental precision: 0.05 mm/s
• Discrepancies between theoretical, simulation, and experimental data (initially): 29.6% and 20.3%
• Discrepancies between theoretical, simulation, and experimental data (after refining the superposition method): 15.0-11.4% (simulation) and 14.8-1.0% (experiment)
• Percentage of uniformity increase in pressure distribution as stack depth increases: consistent with simulation and experimental trends

Sources:

• International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2025;178)
• Tongji University, School of Aerospace Engineering & Applied Mechanics, Shanghai 200092, People's Republic of China
• National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC)
• Shanghai Science and Technology Planning Project
• NewsRx LLC (2025, Information Technology Newsweekly, October 21, 2025, p 792)