Numerical Modeling and Experimental Validation of a Hydrogen/Oxygen Fuel Cell for Underwater Vehicle Applications

This paper presents experimental and simulation studies on a hydrogen fuel cell that utilizes hydrogen and oxygen as reactants, making it suitable for specific vehicles such as submarines and underwater vehicles with air-independent propulsion systems. A fuel cell prototype with an active area of 25 cm2 was constructed using commercial materials and analyzed in detail. The experimental data were compared to numerical results obtained by the ANSYS PEM Fuel Cell Module, and the two sets of results were found to agree closely across a range of polarization curve observations corresponding to voltages between 0.93 and 0.29 V. The validated numerical model enables exploration of internal phenomena, such as mass fractions, water contents, and current flux density that are difficult to study through experiments. This model can also aid in optimizing the configurations and characteristics of the fuel cell components. The findings indicate the potential of using hydrogen fuel cells in specific applications and highlight the value of combining experimental and simulation studies to advance our understanding of these systems. © 2023 SAE International. All rights reserved.