Development of a Pressurized Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Testing Facility

This paper describes the development and validation of a facility for measuring fuel cell performance at pressure. Such data are needed to design the turbine-fuel cell hybrid energy conversion systems envisioned for ultra-efficient aircraft. The facility consists of a pressure vessel with water-cooled walls, heaters, temperature and pressure controls, a gas management system, a humidification system, and a programmable electrical load. Polarization curves of a commercial YSZ-based fuel cell measured in the facility are found to be consistent with theory and the manufacturer's specifications at 1 bara. Increasing the pressure to 4 bara increases peak power density by about 10% in this particular cell. Other scientifically interesting phenomena can also be observed like the drop in cathode pressure associated with increased current density and oxygen transport. Future experiments will use the facility to measure pressure effects in other types of cells and short fuel cell stacks.