Investigation on the Influence of Structural Parameters of Parallel Reactant Flow Channels on the Heat Transfer Characteristics of Bipolar Plates for Hydrogen Fuel Cells in UAV Applications
Keywords:
Hydrogen-powered UAV, Fuel Cell, Bipolar Plates, Reactant Flow Channels, Heat Transfer CharacteristicsAbstract
This study investigates a 20 kW hydrogen fuel cell for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) applications, employing numerical simulations to analyze the influence of structural parameters within parallel reactant flow channels on the heat transfer characteristics of the bipolar plates. The effects of variations in channel width, height, and spacing on thermal performance were examined. Key thermal metrics, including the maximum, average, and minimum temperatures, as well as the temperature difference across the bipolar plates, were systematically evaluated under different channel configurations. The results reveal a significant non-uniformity in the temperature distribution of the fuel cell. Lower temperatures were observed near the reactant inlets and along the sides of the cell, while a triangular high-temperature zone formed adjacent to the reactant outlets. As the channel width ratio increased from 0.02 to 0.04, the maximum and average cell temperatures initially rose and then decreased, peaking at a width ratio of 0.03. At this specific ratio, the temperature difference within the reactant channels was minimized, whereas it reached a maximum within the cooling channels. The overall system temperature difference attained its peak value near a width ratio of 0.035. In contrast, variations in the channel height ratio and spacing ratio were found to have a negligible impact on the core temperature of the fuel cell but significantly influenced the temperature distribution within the cooling channels. Under all tested height and spacing ratios, the temperature difference in the cathode cooling channel (approximately 8 K max.) consistently exceeded that in the anode cooling channel (approximately 2 K max.). The findings of this study provide valuable insights for the design of reactant flow channels in bipolar plates for UAV-oriented hydrogen fuel cells, thereby providing critical technical support for enhancing UAV flight safety assurance, endurance enhancement, sustainable flight efficiency, and overall operational reliability.
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