车用锌空燃料电池系统开发研究

Developing a zinc-air fuel cell system for vehicle applications

为探索一种安全、低成本、高能量的车规锌空电池,基于基本原理,研究开发了一种液流式锌空燃料电池系统。该系统由燃料电池堆和电解液循环子系统组成,使用后通过更换电解液和补充锌料的方式使燃料电池堆复原。为方便补充锌料,采取了电池堆上部开口结构。试制的5节锌空燃料电池堆,每节电池电极有效反应面积为230cm2。经试验证明,单节电池输出功率密度可达170mW/cm2,输出电量120Ah以上,体现出了电解液循环在降低阻抗、增强发电稳定性方面的优势。在此基础上,将燃料电池堆节数增多,即可满足大功率输出的要求。该技术方案还可用于铝空燃料电池、镁空燃料电池等。

A zinc-air flow fuel cell system was developed based on the fundamental principles of general zinc-air batteries to study potential techniques of power sources with safety, low-cost, and high energy for vehicle applications. The system consists of a fuel cell stack and a liquid electrolyte flow subsystem, and the stack is recovered by means of changing electrolyte solution and zinc grains after reactants being worked out. An open construction on the top of the fuel cell stack is adopted to facilitate the supplement of zinc. Tests were carried out in a 5-cell zinc-air fuel cell stack with active area of 230 cm2 in every cell electrode. The results show that the output power density can reach 170 mW/cm2 with a capacity of more than 120 Ah for each cell, which demonstrates the advantage of electrolyte circulation in reducing cell impedances and enhancing performance stability. Therefore, large power zinc-air fuel cell systems for vehicle uses can be made by adding more cells in the stacks according to the power demands. The design can also be used in Al-air and Mg-air fuel cells.