Mass transport limitations in polymer electrolyte water electrolyzers using spatially-resolved current measurement

Roenning, Frida H.; Roy, Anirban; Aaron, Douglas S.; Mench, Matthew M.

doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2022.231749

Mass transport limitations in polymer electrolyte water electrolyzers using spatially-resolved current measurement

Journal Article · Fri Jul 08 00:00:00 EDT 2022 · Journal of Power Sources

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2022.231749· OSTI ID:1977402

Roenning, Frida H. ^[1]; Roy, Anirban ^[2]; Aaron, Douglas S. ^[2]; ^[2]

University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States); OSTI
University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States)

Here this work utilizes spatially-resolved current measurements to provide insight into mass transport limitations in electrolyzers that are not observable from traditional polarization measurement. In this study, two types of flow-fields (parallel and triple-serpentine) and two types of diffusion media (patterned porous thin titanium foil LGDLs and Ir-coated titanium felt PTLs) were examined. A non-uniform current distribution dominated by mass transport limitations was observed to be instigated by the restriction of liquid water transport to catalyst sites. Additionally, conditions are revealed which yield similar polarization performance but dissimilar current distributions. In such cases, the transport limitations for different architectures and porous media affect polarization in different regions of the active area. Furthermore, the triple-serpentine flow-field used in this study performs better than the parallel flow-field under mass transport limited operating conditions. This indicates that the parallel flow-field used in this study is more susceptible to starvation than the triple-serpentine flow-field for the electrolyzer studied.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE; USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)

Grant/Contract Number:: EE0008426

OSTI ID:: 1977402

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1876251

Journal Information:: Journal of Power Sources, Journal Name: Journal of Power Sources Journal Issue: C Vol. 542; ISSN 0378-7753

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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