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Investigation of a small-volume direct methanol fuel cell stack for portable applications

Author

Listed:
  • Yuan, Zhenyu
  • Zhang, Yufeng
  • Fu, Wenting
  • Li, Zipeng
  • Liu, Xiaowei

Abstract

In this paper, a 6-cells direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) stack with the volume of only 13.25 cm3 and the weight of 24.075 g is designed, fabricated and tested. First, the material characterization of the Au-coated Al current collector is investigated to exhibit superior characteristics in electric conductivity, weight and electrochemical corrosion resistance. And then the steady-state performance of the stack is tested, the maximum power output of the stack reaches 568.4 mW at room temperature. The dynamic performance and durability of the stack are also investigated in consideration of practical conditions. Results indicate that stack performance represents good responding and reproducible ability. Finally, the DMFC stack proves its good performance in powering experimental fan two times in 30 days successfully.

Suggested Citation

  • Yuan, Zhenyu & Zhang, Yufeng & Fu, Wenting & Li, Zipeng & Liu, Xiaowei, 2013. "Investigation of a small-volume direct methanol fuel cell stack for portable applications," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 462-467.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:energy:v:51:y:2013:i:c:p:462-467
    DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2012.12.033
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Fang, Shuo & Zhang, Yufeng & Ma, Zezhong & Zou, Yuezhang & Liu, Xiaowei, 2016. "Development of a micro direct methanol fuel cell with heat control," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 116(P1), pages 978-985.
    2. Santiago, Óscar & Navarro, Emilio & Raso, Miguel A. & Leo, Teresa J., 2016. "Review of implantable and external abiotically catalysed glucose fuel cells and the differences between their membranes and catalysts," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 497-522.
    3. Li, Yang & Zhang, Xuelin & Yuan, Weijian & Zhang, Yufeng & Liu, Xiaowei, 2018. "A novel CO2 gas removal design for a micro passive direct methanol fuel cell," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 599-607.
    4. Borghei, Maryam & Scotti, Gianmario & Kanninen, Petri & Weckman, Timo & Anoshkin, Ilya V. & Nasibulin, Albert G. & Franssila, Sami & Kauppinen, Esko I. & Kallio, Tanja & Ruiz, Virginia, 2014. "Enhanced performance of a silicon microfabricated direct methanol fuel cell with PtRu catalysts supported on few-walled carbon nanotubes," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 612-620.
    5. Deng, Huichao & Zhang, Xuelin & Ma, Zezhong & Chen, Hailong & Sun, Qiu & Zhang, Yufeng & Liu, Xiaowei, 2014. "A micro passive direct methanol fuel cell with high performance via plasma electrolytic oxidation on aluminum-based substrate," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 149-153.
    6. An, Myung-Gi & Mehmood, Asad & Hwang, Jinyeon & Ha, Heung Yong, 2016. "A novel method of methanol concentration control through feedback of the amplitudes of output voltage fluctuations for direct methanol fuel cells," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 217-226.
    7. Alipour Najmi, Ali & Rowshanzamir, Soosan & Parnian, Mohammad Javad, 2016. "Investigation of NaOH concentration effect in injected fuel on the performance of passive direct methanol alkaline fuel cell with modified cation exchange membrane," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 589-599.
    8. Kim, Taegyu, 2014. "NaBH4 (sodium borohydride) hydrogen generator with a volume-exchange fuel tank for small unmanned aerial vehicles powered by a PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cell," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 721-727.
    9. Wang, Luwen & He, Mingyan & Hu, Yue & Zhang, Yufeng & Liu, Xiaowei & Wang, Gaofeng, 2015. "A “4-cell” modular passive DMFC (direct methanol fuel cell) stack for portable applications," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 229-235.
    10. Oh, Taek Hyun & Jang, Bosun & Kwon, Sejin, 2014. "Performance evaluation of direct borohydride–hydrogen peroxide fuel cells with electrocatalysts supported on multiwalled carbon nanotubes," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 911-919.
    11. Fang, Shuo & Zhang, Yufeng & Ma, Zezhong & Sang, Shengtian & Liu, Xiaowei, 2016. "Systemic modeling and analysis of DMFC stack for behavior prediction in system-level application," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 1015-1023.

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