Influence of operation conditions on the performance of single direct methanol fuel cell

The polarization curves,power density curves,anode and cathode polarization curves of single direct methanol fuel cell(DMFC)were tested at different cell temperatures,different concentrations and flow rates of methanol solution,respectively.The results show that the cell performance increases with the increasing of cell temperature,but the overpotential of anode decreases.The methanol crossover also increases with the increasing of cell temperature.The mixed potential is formed in cathode due to methanol crossover,which resulted in the augment of cathode polarization.The current densities,at which the concentration polarization occurred,increased with the increase of methanol solution concentrations in anode,the crossover rate of methanol also augments,and electrochemical polarization in cathode synchronously increases.The effect of flow rates of methanol solution on the performance of single DMFC is weak at the same temperature and concentration of methanol solution.The performance of single DMFC is the best and its maximum power density is 61.7mW/cm2 at cell temperature of 60℃,the concentration of 1.0mol/L and flow rate of 2.5mL/min for methanol solution.