Understanding how the water produced in an operating polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is transported in cathode catalyst layer (CCL) is crucial to improving performance and efficiency. In this thesis, a multiple-relaxation-time (MRT) lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) is employed to simulate the high density ratio, multiphase water transport in in the CCL. The three-dimensional structure of the catalyst layer is reconstructed based on experimental data acquired with a dual beam scanning electron microscope/focused ion beam system and a stochastic method using lower order statistical functions (e.g. porosity and two point correlation functions). Simulations of the water transport dynamics are performed to examine the effect of a range of physical parameters: wettability, viscosity ratio, pressure gradient, and surface tension. The water penetration patterns in the catalyst layers reveal a complex fingering process and transition of the water transport pattern from a capillary fingering regime to a stable displacement regime is observed when the wettability potential of the catalyst layer changes.
The second part of the analysis focuses on quantifying the impact of liquid water distribution and accumulation in the catalyst layer on effective transport properties by coupling two numerical methods: the two-phase LBM is used to determine equilibrium liquid water distribution, and then a finite volume-based pore-scale model (FV-PSM) is used to compute transport of reactant and charged species in the CL accounting for the impact of liquid water saturation .The simulated results elucidate and quantify the significant impact of liquid water on the effective oxygen and water vapor diffusivity, and thermal conductivity in CLs. / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uvic.ca/oai:dspace.library.uvic.ca:1828/7682 |
| Date | 21 December 2016 |
| Creators | Akhgar, Alireza |
| Contributors | Djilali, Ned |
| Source Sets | University of Victoria |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | Available to the World Wide Web |
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