Measurement and estimation of species distribution in a direct methanol fuel cell

Determination of methanol concentration in a direct methanol fuel cell is crucial for design improvement and performance enhancement. Methanol and water concentrations in a direct methanol fuel cell are experimentally and numerically investigated. In the experimental program, a single cell direct methanol fuel cell is developed and an experimental setup is devised to measure methanol and water concentrations and performance of the cell depending on operating conditions. In theoretical program a mathematical model which includes fluid flow, species distribution, electric field and electrochemistry is adapted and numerically solved. The results showed that the performance of a Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC) is mainly influenced by operating temperature. A large drop in methanol concentration methanol is measured at the inlet section of cell. The mathematical model is found to satisfactorily capture main physics involved in a DMFC.