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Numerical Study of a 3D Two-Phase PEM Fuel Cell Model Via a Novel Automated Finite Element/Finite Volume Program Generator

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 August 2015

Pengtao Sun ,
Su Zhou ,
Qiya Hu  and
Guoping Liang
Pengtao Sun*
Affiliation:
Department of Mathematical Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, 4505 Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA
Su Zhou*
Affiliation:
Department of Fuel Cell Power Systems, Tongji University (Jiading campus), 4800 Caoan Road, Shanghai 201804, China
Qiya Hu*
Affiliation:
Institute of Computational Mathematics and Scientific Engineering Computing, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100080, China
Guoping Liang*
Affiliation:
Institute of Mathematics, Academy of Mathematics and Systems Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100080, China
*
Corresponding author.Email:pengtao.sun@unlv.edu
Email:suzhou@tongji.edu.en
Email:hqy@lsec.cc.ac.cn
Email:guopingliang@yahoo.com.ecn
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Abstract

Numerical methods of a 3D multiphysics, two-phase transport model of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is studied in this paper. Due to the coexistence of multiphase regions, the standard finite element/finite volume method may fail to obtain a convergent nonlinear iteration for a two-phase transport model of PEMFC [49,50]. By introducing Kirchhoff transformation technique and a combined finite element-upwind finite volume approach, we efficiently achieve a fast convergence and reasonable solutions for this multiphase, multiphysics PEMFC model. Numerical implementation is done by using a novel automated finite element/finite volume program generator (FEPG). By virtue of a high-level algorithm description language (script), component programming and human intelligence technologies, FEPG can quickly generate finite element/finite volume source code for PEMFC simulation. Thus, one can focus on the efficient algorithm research without being distracted by the tedious computer programming on finite element/finite volume methods. Numerical success confirms that FEPG is an efficient tool for both algorithm research and software development of a 3D, multiphysics PEMFC model with multicomponent and multiphase mechanism.

Keywords

65B9965K0565K1065N0865N1265N2265N3065Z05Proton exchange membrane fuel celltwo-phase transportKirchhoff transformationfinite elementfinite volumeautomated program generatoralgorithm description languagescript
Type
Research Article
Information
Communications in Computational Physics , Volume 11 , Issue 1 , January 2012 , pp. 65 - 98
Copyright
Copyright © Global Science Press Limited 2012

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