Synergetic integration of a methanol steam reforming cell with a high temperature polymer electrolyte fuel cell

Abstract

In this work an integrated unit, combining a methanol steam-reforming cell (MSR-C) and ahigh temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (HT-PEMFC) was operated at thesame temperature (453 K, 463 K and 473 K) allowing thermal integration and increasing thesystem efficiency of the combined system. A novel bipolar plate made of aluminium goldplated was built, featuring the fuel cell anode flow field in one side and the reformer flowfield on the other. The combined unit (MSR-C/HT-PEMFC) was assembled using Celtec®P2200N MEAs and commercial reforming catalyst CuO/ZnO/Al2O3 (BASF RP60). The water/methanol vaporisation originates oscillations in the vapour flowrate; reducing these oscillations increase the methanol conversion from 93% to 96%. The MSR-C/HT-PEMFC showed aremarkable high performance at 453 K. The integrated unit was operated during ca. 700 h atconstant at 0.2 A cm2, fed alternately with hydrogen and reformate at 453 K and 463 K.Despite the high operating temperature, the HT-PEMFC showed a good stability, with anelectric potential difference decreasing rate at 453 K of ca. 100 mV h1. Electrochemicalimpedance spectroscopy (EIS) analysis revealed an overall increase of the ohmic resistancesand charge transfer resistances of the electrodes; this fact was assigned to phosphoric acidlosses from the electrodes and membrane and catalyst particle size growth.(c) 2017 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved