Free vibration analysis of a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell

H. E.U. Ahmed, R. Banan, J. W. Zu, A. Bazylak

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

29 Scopus citations

Abstract

A free vibration analysis of a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is performed by modelling the PEMFC as a 20 cm × 20 cm composite plate structure. The membrane, gas diffusion electrodes, and bi-polar plates are modelled as composite material plies. Energy equations are derived based on Mindlin's plate theory, and natural frequencies and mode shapes of the PEMFC are calculated using finite element modelling. A parametric study is conducted to investigate how the natural frequency varies as a function of thickness, Young's modulus, and density for each component layer. It is observed that increasing the thickness of the bi-polar plates has the most significant effect on the lowest natural frequency, with a 25% increase in thickness resulting in a 17% increase in the natural frequency. The mode shapes of the PEMFC provide insight into the maximum displacement exhibited as well as the stresses experienced by the single cell under vibration conditions that should be considered for transportation and stationary applications. This work provides insight into how the natural frequencies of the PEMFC should be tuned to avoid high amplitude oscillations by modifying the material and geometric properties of individual components.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)5520-5525
Number of pages6
JournalJournal of Power Sources
Volume196
Issue number13
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jul 2011

Keywords

  • Composite layers
  • Free vibrations
  • Mode shapes
  • Natural frequency
  • PEMFC
  • Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell

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