%0 Journal Article
%T Effects of Anode Flow Field Design on CO2 Bubble Behavior in ¦ÌDMFC
%A Miaomiao Li
%A Junsheng Liang
%A Chong Liu
%A Gongquan Sun
%A Gang Zhao
%J Sensors
%D 2009
%I MDPI AG
%R 10.3390/s90503314
%X Clogging of anode flow channels by CO2 bubbles is a vital problem for further performance improvements of the micro direct methanol fuel cell (¦ÌDMFC). In this paper, a new type anode structure usingthe concept of the non-equipotent serpentine flow field (NESFF) to solve this problem was designed, fabricated and tested. Experiments comparing the ¦ÌDMFC with and without this type of anode flow field were implemented using a home-made test loop. Results show that the mean-value, amplitude and frequency of the inlet-to-outlet pressure drops in the NESFF is far lower than that in the traditional flow fields at high ¦ÌDMFC output current. Furthermore, the sequential images of the CO2 bubbles as well as the ¦ÌDMFC performance with different anode flow field pattern were also investigated, and the conclusions are in accordance with those derived from the pressure drop experiments. Results of this study indicate that the non-equipotent design of the ¦ÌDMFC anode flow field can effectively mitigate the CO2 clogging in the flow channels, and hence lead to a significant promotion of the ¦ÌDMFC performance.
%K ¦ÌDMFC
%K flow field
%K pressure drop
%K CO2 bubbles
%U http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/9/5/3314