Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. It has a place in the energy mix of the future, especially regarding fuel cells (FCs). This book is an investigation into FCs. Prominence is given to the subject of PEMFCs (proton exchange membrane fuel cells) as they offer interesting perspectives on transport and stationary applications. This being said, a number of technological and scientific obstacles remain to be overcome before an industrial level of development can be reached.

Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. It has a place in the energy mix of the future, especially regarding fuel cells (FCs). This book is an investigation into FCs. Prominence is given to the subject of PEMFCs (proton exchange membrane fuel cells) as they offer interesting perspectives on transport and stationary applications. This being said, a number of technological and scientific obstacles remain to be overcome before an industrial level of development can be reached.

PEM Fuel Cell Diagnostic Tools presents various tools for diagnosing PEM fuel cells and stacks, including in situ and ex situ diagnostic tools, electrochemical techniques, and physical/chemical methods. The text outlines the principles, experimental implementation, data processing, and application of each technique, along with its capabilities and weaknesses. The book covers many diagnostics employed in the characterization and determination of fuel cell performance. It discusses commonly used conventional tools, such as cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. It also examines special tools developed specifically for PEM fuel cells, including transparent cells, cathode discharge, and current mapping, as well as recent advanced tools for diagnosis, such as magnetic resonance imaging and atomic force microscopy. For clarity, the book splits these diagnostic methodologies into two parts—in situ and ex situ. To better understand the tools, PEM fuel cell testing is also discussed. Each self-contained chapter provides cross-references to other chapters. Written by international scientists active in PEM fuel cell research, this volume incorporates state-of-the-art technical advances in PEM fuel cell diagnosis. The diagnostic tools presented help readers to understand the physical and chemical phenomena involved in PEM fuel cells.

An apparently appropriate control scheme for PEM fuel cells may actually lead to an inoperable plant when it is connected to other unit operations in a process with recycle streams and energy integration. PEM Fuel Cells with Bio-Ethanol Processor Systems presents a control system design that provides basic regulation of the hydrogen production process with PEM fuel cells. It then goes on to construct a fault diagnosis system to improve plant safety above this control structure. PEM Fuel Cells with Bio-Ethanol Processor Systems is divided into two parts: the first covers fuel cells and the second discusses plants for hydrogen production from bio-ethanol to feed PEM fuel cells. Both parts give detailed analyses of modeling, simulation, advanced control, and fault diagnosis. They give an extensive, in-depth discussion of the problems that can occur in fuel cell systems and propose a way to control these systems through advanced control algorithms. A significant part of the book is also given over to computer-aided engineering software tools that can be used to evaluate the dynamic performance of the overall plant. PEM Fuel Cells with Bio-Ethanol Processor Systems is intended for use by researchers and advanced students on chemical, electrical-electronic and mechanical engineering courses in which dynamics and control are incorporated with the traditional steady-state coverage of flowsheet synthesis, engineering economics and optimization.

This volume, presented by leading experts in the field, covers the latest advances in diagnostics and modeling of polymer electrolyte fuel cells, from understanding catalyst layer durability to start-up under freezing conditions.

While PEM fuel cells are highly efficient, environmentally friendly sources of power, their durability hinders the commercialization of this technology. With contributions from international scientists active in PEM fuel cell research, PEM Fuel Cell Durability Handbook, Two-Volume Set provides a comprehensive source of state-of-the-art research in

PEM Fuel Cell Testing and Diagnosis covers the recent advances in PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cell systems, focusing on instruments and techniques for testing and diagnosis, and the application of diagnostic techniques in practical tests and operation. This book is a unique source of electrochemical techniques for researchers, scientists and engineers working in the area of fuel cells. Proton exchange membrane fuel cells are currently considered the most promising clean energy-converting devices for stationary, transportation, and micro-power applications due to their high energy density, high efficiency, and environmental friendliness. To advance research and development of this emerging technology, testing and diagnosis are an essential combined step. This book aids those efforts, addressing effects of humidity, temperature and pressure on fuel cells, degradation and failure analysis, and design and assembly of MEAs, single cells and stacks. - Provides fundamental and theoretical principles for PEM fuel cell testing and diagnosis. - Comprehensive source for selecting techniques, experimental designs and data analysis - Analyzes PEM fuel cell degradation and failure mechanisms, and suggests failure mitigation strategies - Provides principles for selecting PEM fuel cell key materials to improve durability

"Proton exchange membrane fuel cells are a promising technology for the automotive industry. However, it is necessary to develop effective diagnostic tools to improve system reliability and operational life to be competitive in the automotive market. Early detection and diagnosis of fuel cell faults may lead to increased system reliability and performance. An efficient on-line diagnosis system may prevent irreparable damage due to poor control and system fatigue. Current attempts to monitor fuel cell stack health are limited to specialized tests that require numerous parameters. An increased effort exists to minimize parameter input and maximize diagnostic robustness. Most methods use complex models or black-box methods to determine a singular fault mode. Limited research exists with pre-processing or statistical methods. This research examines the effectiveness of a Naïve Bayes classifier on determining multiple states of health; such as healthy, dry, degraded catalyst, and inert gas build-up. Independent component analysis and principal component analysis are investigated for preprocessing. An automotive style fuel cell model is developed to generate data for these purposes. Since automotive applications have limited computational power, a system that minimizes the number of inputs and computational complexity is preferred."--Abstract.

This book is a comprehensive review of high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). PEMFCs are the preferred fuel cells for a variety of applications such as automobiles, cogeneration of heat and power units, emergency power and portable electronics. The first 5 chapters of the book describe rationalization and illustration of approaches to high temperature PEM systems. Chapters 6 - 13 are devoted to fabrication, optimization and characterization of phosphoric acid-doped polybenzimidazole membranes, the very first electrolyte system that has demonstrated the concept of and motivated extensive research activity in the field. The last 11 chapters summarize the state-of-the-art of technological development of high temperature-PEMFCs based on acid doped PBI membranes including catalysts, electrodes, MEAs, bipolar plates, modelling, stacking, diagnostics and applications.

An apparently appropriate control scheme for PEM fuel cells may actually lead to an inoperable plant when it is connected to other unit operations in a process with recycle streams and energy integration. PEM Fuel Cells with Bio-Ethanol Processor Systems presents a control system design that provides basic regulation of the hydrogen production process with PEM fuel cells. It then goes on to construct a fault diagnosis system to improve plant safety above this control structure. PEM Fuel Cells with Bio-Ethanol Processor Systems is divided into two parts: the first covers fuel cells and the second discusses plants for hydrogen production from bio-ethanol to feed PEM fuel cells. Both parts give detailed analyses of modeling, simulation, advanced control, and fault diagnosis. They give an extensive, in-depth discussion of the problems that can occur in fuel cell systems and propose a way to control these systems through advanced control algorithms. A significant part of the book is also given over to computer-aided engineering software tools that can be used to evaluate the dynamic performance of the overall plant. PEM Fuel Cells with Bio-Ethanol Processor Systems is intended for use by researchers and advanced students on chemical, electrical-electronic and mechanical engineering courses in which dynamics and control are incorporated with the traditional steady-state coverage of flowsheet synthesis, engineering economics and optimization.