Study of external humidification method in proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Water management is essential for performance enhancement of a PEMFC because proton conductivity depends on hydration of the polymer. An external humidification method is used in a fuel cell experiment. Humidity and temperature of the gas are measured using humidity and a dew-point transmitter. An E-tek electrode and a Nafion 115 membrane was used to check the relationship between humidity and performance of a fuel cell. The Fuel cell performance experiment was carried out using a control program that is made in laboratory using HP VEE. Humidity data on the steady state was used to understand the effect of humidity on fuel cell performance. An experiment was performed to improve fuel cell efficiency at lower humidity and temperature condition. The relative humidity of hydrogen gas was lower by about 10-15% than that of air or oxygen but the temperature was higher by about 2.5 degreesC. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.