Numerical study of heat transfer and pressure drop in a fuel cell with porous material

The purpose of this research is to cool the polymer fuel cells using a cooling fluid. The use of metal porous materials in fluid channels increases the level of fluid contact with the thermal surface. Porous metals are used inside the channels with spiral, parallel and multi-channel arrangement. Heat transfer and pressure drop are investigated for different materials, different porosities, and various arrangements of the full cell. Two fluids, water and ethylene glycol are used as a working fluid. The results show that the water has a better thermal performance. As the porosity of the material increases, the heat transfer and the pressure drop decreases. It is revealed that the multi-channel arrangement has the highest heat transfer rate, while the spiral pattern shows the highest pressure drop.