Research and Development of the Bipolar Plate Integrated with Coolant Channels for PEMFCs

• Main Authors: Huang-Jen Chen, 陳皇任
• Other Authors: Kun-Tsan Jeng
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2005
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/92976481882392421573

碩士 === 大葉大學 === 機械工程研究所碩士班 === 93 === For the fuel cell technology of nowadays, the cost of bipolar plates accounts for an important portion of the total cost of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell （PEMFC）. Therefore, the emergences of novel bipolar plates, with good physical and chemical properties and low cost, might make the fuel cell era arrive earlier, which will help reduce the air pollution problem on the earth. Both the sheet metal and the plastics materials have the characteristics of being easy-to-fabricate and inexpensive, the composite material bipolar plate made of corrugated sheet metal, then covered with plastics to form flow channels and finally plated with gold on the current collector ribs, promise to replace the expensive bipolar plate being currently used in PEMFCs. This is due to its merits of low cost, good corrosion resistance, efficient heat transfer good electrical conductivity, and being robust compact, as well as lightweight. The main purpose of the present research is to fabricate the prototypes of such kind of bipolar plates and to conduct the experiments to validate this innovation, with the hope that the novel bipolar plates could be put widely in service for PEMFCs and set a mile-stone in fuel cell technology. The results show that the technology of bipolar plate is feasible and is superior to the existing ones. According to the single cell test, the power attained 0.334 W/cm2. If the PEMFC stacks that made with this integrated bipolar plates, can be put to coolant and long-time test as the continued research, the outcomes might greatly benefit the development of the PEMFC’s technology.