A comprehensive modeling method for proton exchange membrane electrolyzer development

Ma, Zhiwen; Witteman, Liam; Wrubel, Jacob A.; Bender, Guido

doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2021.02.170

A comprehensive modeling method for proton exchange membrane electrolyzer development

Journal Article · Fri Mar 26 00:00:00 EDT 2021 · International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2021.02.170· OSTI ID:1774873

^[1]; ^[1]; ^[1]; ^[1]

National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

Hydrogen attracts significant interests as an effective energy carrier that can be derived from renewable sources. Hydrogen production using a proton-exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer can efficiently convert renewable power via water splitting in wide scales—from large, centralized generation to on-site production. Mathematical models with multiple scales and fidelities facilitate the continuing improvements of PEM electrolyzer development to improve performance, cost, and reliability. The model scopes and methods are presented in this paper, which also introduces a comprehensive PEM electrolysis modeling tool based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software, ANSYS/Fluent. The modeling tool incorporates electrochemical model of a PEM electrolysis cell to simulate the performance of coupled thermal-fluid, species transport, and electrochemical processes in a product-scale cell or stack by leveraging the powerful meshing generation and CFD solver of ANSYS/Fluent. The thermal-fluid modeling includes liquid water/gas two-phase flow and simulates a PEM electrolysis cell by using Fluent user-defined functions as add-on modules accounting for PEM-specific species transport and electrochemical processes. The modeling outcomes expediate PEM electrolyzer scaling up from basic material development and laboratory testing.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office (EE-3F); USDOE National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program

Grant/Contract Number:: AC36-08GO28308

OSTI ID:: 1774873

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1815078

Report Number(s):: NREL/JA-5700-79653; MainId:35874; UUID:c8fc4b54-acb8-4047-986b-f3a762fa1c8a; MainAdminID:21190

Journal Information:: International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Journal Name: International Journal of Hydrogen Energy Journal Issue: 34 Vol. 46; ISSN 0360-3199

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

References (48)

Numerical prediction of mass-exchange between cathode and anode channels in a PEM fuel cell Dutta, Sandip; Shimpalee, Sirivatch; Van Zee, J. W. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol. 44, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0017-9310(00)00257-X	journal	June 2001
Influence of pore structural properties of current collectors on the performance of proton exchange membrane electrolyzer Ito, Hiroshi; Maeda, Tetsuhiko; Nakano, Akihiro Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 100 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2012.05.068	journal	June 2013
A multiscale physical model of a polymer electrolyte membrane water electrolyzer Oliveira, Luiz Fernando L.; Jallut, Christian; Franco, Alejandro A. Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 110 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2013.07.214	journal	November 2013
Resistor-Network Modeling of Ionic Conduction in Polymer Electrolytes Gostick, Jeff T.; Weber, Adam Z. Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 179 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2015.03.126	journal	October 2015
Effects of membrane electrode assembly properties on two-phase transport and performance in proton exchange membrane electrolyzer cells Han, Bo; Mo, Jingke; Kang, Zhenye Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 188 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2015.11.139	journal	January 2016
Structure-Transport Relationship of Perfluorosulfonic-Acid Membranes in Different Cationic Forms Shi, Shouwen; Weber, Adam Z.; Kusoglu, Ahmet Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 220 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2016.10.096	journal	December 2016
Performance Modeling and Current Mapping of Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzer Cells with Novel Thin/Tunable Liquid/Gas Diffusion Layers Kang, Zhenye; Mo, Jingke; Yang, Gaoqiang Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 255 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2017.09.170	journal	November 2017
Thermal and electrochemical analysis of different flow field patterns in a PEM electrolyzer Toghyani, S.; Afshari, E.; Baniasadi, E. Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 267 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2018.02.078	journal	March 2018
Towards uniformly distributed heat, mass and charge: A flow field design study for high pressure and high current density operation of PEM electrolysis cells Olesen, Anders Christian; Frensch, Steffen Henrik; Kær, Søren Knudsen Electrochimica Acta, Vol. 293 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2018.10.008	journal	January 2019
Using the hydrogen for sustainable energy storage: Designs, modeling, identification and simulation membrane behavior in PEM system electrolyser Mohamed, Blal; Alli, Benattilah; Ahmed, Bellassri Journal of Energy Storage, Vol. 7 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.est.2016.06.006	journal	August 2016
Dynamic modelling of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer Gorgun, H. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 31, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2005.04.001	journal	January 2006
Numerical studies on rib & channel dimension of flow-field on PEMFC performance Shimpalee, S.; Vanzee, J. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 32, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2006.11.032	journal	May 2007
Theoretical model and experimental analysis of a high pressure PEM water electrolyser for hydrogen production Marangio, F.; Santarelli, M.; Cali, M. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 34, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2008.11.083	journal	February 2009
Dynamic modeling and simulation of a proton exchange membrane electrolyzer for hydrogen production Awasthi, A.; Scott, Keith; Basu, S. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 36, Issue 22 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2011.03.045	journal	November 2011
Understanding the effect of channel tolerances on performance of PEMFCs Shimpalee, S.; Lilavivat, V.; Van Zee, J. W. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 36, Issue 19 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2011.06.146	journal	September 2011
One-dimensional dynamic modeling of a high-pressure water electrolysis system for hydrogen production Kim, Huiyong; Park, Mikyoung; Lee, Kwang Soon International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 38, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2012.12.006	journal	February 2013
A comprehensive review on PEM water electrolysis Carmo, Marcelo; Fritz, David L.; Mergel, Jürgen International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 38, Issue 12, p. 4901-4934 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2013.01.151	journal	April 2013
Two-phase flow in a proton exchange membrane electrolyzer visualized in situ by simultaneous neutron radiography and optical imaging Selamet, O. F.; Pasaogullari, U.; Spernjak, D. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 38, Issue 14 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2013.02.087	journal	May 2013
In situ diagnostic techniques for characterisation of polymer electrolyte membrane water electrolysers – Flow visualisation and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy Dedigama, I.; Angeli, P.; Ayers, K. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 39, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2014.01.026	journal	March 2014
Characterisation tools development for PEM electrolysers van der Merwe, Jan; Uren, Kenny; van Schoor, George International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 39, Issue 26 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2014.02.096	journal	September 2014
Membrane degradation in PEM water electrolyzer: Numerical modeling and experimental evidence of the influence of temperature and current density Chandesris, M.; Médeau, V.; Guillet, N. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 40, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2014.11.111	journal	January 2015
Analysis and visualization of water flow impact on hydrogen production efficiency in solid polymer water electrolyzer under high-pressure condition Ito, Kohei; Maeda, Yusuke; Sakaguchi, Takuya International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 40, Issue 18 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2015.03.045	journal	May 2015
Modelling and simulation of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser cell Abdin, Z.; Webb, C. J.; Gray, E. MacA. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 40, Issue 39 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2015.07.129	journal	October 2015
Two-dimensional model of low-pressure PEM electrolyser: Two-phase flow regime, electrochemical modelling and experimental validation Aubras, F.; Deseure, J.; Kadjo, J. -J. A. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 42, Issue 42 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2017.08.211	journal	October 2017
Future cost and performance of water electrolysis: An expert elicitation study Schmidt, O.; Gambhir, A.; Staffell, I. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 42, Issue 52 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2017.10.045	journal	December 2017
Theoretical and experimental analysis of an asymmetric high pressure PEM water electrolyser up to 155 bar Sartory, Markus; Wallnöfer-Ogris, Eva; Salman, Patrick International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 42, Issue 52 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2017.10.112	journal	December 2017
Hydraulic ex situ through-plane characterization of porous transport layers in PEM water electrolysis cells Bromberger, Kolja; Ghinaiya, Jagdishkumar; Lickert, Thomas International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 43, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2017.12.042	journal	February 2018
Effect of flow-field pattern and flow configuration on the performance of a polymer-electrolyte-membrane water electrolyzer at high temperature Li, Hua; Nakajima, Hironori; Inada, Akiko International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Vol. 43, Issue 18 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2018.02.171	journal	May 2018
Numerical and experimental study of three-dimensional fluid flow in the bipolar plate of a PEM electrolysis cell Nie, Jianhu; Chen, Yitung; Cohen, Steve International Journal of Thermal Sciences, Vol. 48, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2009.02.017	journal	October 2009
Parameters estimation of a PEM fuel cell polarization curve and analysis of their behavior with temperature Santarelli, M. G.; Torchio, M. F.; Cochis, P. Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 159, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2005.11.099	journal	September 2006
The impact of channel path length on PEMFC flow-field design Shimpalee, S.; Greenway, S.; Van Zee, J. W. Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 160, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2006.01.099	journal	September 2006
Prediction of transient response for a 25-cm2 PEM fuel cell Shimpalee, S.; Spuckler, D.; Van Zee, J. W. Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 167, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2007.02.004	journal	May 2007
Semiempirical model based on thermodynamic principles for determining 6kW proton exchange membrane electrolyzer stack characteristics Dale, N. V.; Mann, M. D.; Salehfar, H. Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 185, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2008.08.054	journal	December 2008
Feasibility study of using microfluidic platforms for visualizing bubble flows in electrolyzer gas diffusion layers Arbabi, F.; Kalantarian, A.; Abouatallah, R. Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 258 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2014.02.042	journal	July 2014
An overview of polymer electrolyte membrane electrolyzer for hydrogen production: Modeling and mass transport Abdol Rahim, A. H.; Tijani, Alhassan Salami; Kamarudin, S. K. Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 309 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2016.01.012	journal	March 2016
An analysis of degradation phenomena in polymer electrolyte membrane water electrolysis Rakousky, Christoph; Reimer, Uwe; Wippermann, Klaus Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 326 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2016.06.082	journal	September 2016
Gas-diffusion-layer structural properties under compression via X-ray tomography Zenyuk, Iryna V.; Parkinson, Dilworth Y.; Connolly, Liam G. Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 328 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2016.08.020	journal	October 2016
Experimental and numerical study of flow in expanded metal plate for water electrolysis applications Lafmejani, Saeed Sadeghi; Müller, Martin; Olesen, Anders Christian Journal of Power Sources, Vol. 397 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2018.07.032	journal	September 2018
Numerical Modeling the Effect of Operating Variables on Faraday Efficiency in PEM Electrolyzer Tijani, Alhassan Salami; Rahim, A. H. Abdol Procedia Technology, Vol. 26 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.protcy.2016.08.054	journal	January 2016
Modelling and experimental validation of a 46 kW PEM high pressure water electrolyzer Espinosa-López, Manuel; Darras, Christophe; Poggi, Philippe Renewable Energy, Vol. 119 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2017.11.081	journal	April 2018
PEM electrolysis for production of hydrogen from renewable energy sources Barbir, Frano Solar Energy, Vol. 78, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2004.09.003	journal	May 2005
A simple model for solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) water electrolysis Choi, P. Solid State Ionics, Vol. 175, Issue 1-4 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssi.2004.01.076	journal	November 2004
New Insights into Perfluorinated Sulfonic-Acid Ionomers Kusoglu, Ahmet; Weber, Adam Z. Chemical Reviews, Vol. 117, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.6b00159	journal	January 2017
High Power Internal-Reforming Direct Carbonate Fuel Cell Stack Development Through Mathematical Modeling and Engineering Optimization Ma, Zhiwen; Venkataraman, Ramakrishnan; Farooque, Mohammad Journal of Fuel Cell Science and Technology, Vol. 7, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4000625	journal	July 2010
Understanding the Effect of Kinetic and Mass Transport Processes in Cathode Agglomerates Moore, M.; Wardlaw, P.; Dobson, P. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 161, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1149/2.010408jes	journal	January 2014
Communication—Modeling Polymer-Electrolyte Fuel-Cell Agglomerates with Double-Trap Kinetics Pant, Lalit M.; Weber, Adam Z. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 164, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1149/2.0111711jes	journal	January 2017
A Critical Review of Modeling Transport Phenomena in Polymer-Electrolyte Fuel Cells Weber, Adam Z.; Borup, Rodney L.; Darling, Robert M. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 161, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1149/2.0751412jes	journal	January 2014
Critical Review—Identifying Critical Gaps for Polymer Electrolyte Water Electrolysis Development Babic, Ugljesa; Suermann, Michel; Büchi, Felix N. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 164, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1149/2.1441704jes	journal	January 2017

Similar Records

PEM Electrolyzer Incorporating an Advanced Low-Cost Membrane

Technical Report · Thu Aug 29 00:00:00 EDT 2013 · OSTI ID:1091385

Compilation of CFD Models of Various Solid Oxide Electrolyzers Analyzed at the Idaho National Laboratory

Conference · Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 2012 · OSTI ID:1056024

Three-Dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics Modeling of Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cells and Stacks

Conference · Tue Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 2008 · OSTI ID:935472

Related Subjects

08 HYDROGEN
electrochemical modeling
hydrogen production
low temperature electrolysis water splitting
proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell

A comprehensive modeling method for proton exchange membrane electrolyzer development

Citation Formats

References (48)

Similar Records

Related Subjects