Document Type

Thesis

College

College of Engineering

Department

Mechanical Engineering

Degree

MSE in Mechanical Engineering

Date Completed

2019

First Committee Member

Santamaria, Anthony

Second Committee Member

Mortazavi, Mehdi

Third Committee Member

Benner, Jingru

Additional Committee Member(s)

Salmon, Christian; Cheraghi, Hossein

Abstract

"The goal of the thesis research outlined herein was to examine the effects of superimposing an acoustic pressure wave on air flow for the purpose of liquid water removal in a PEM fuel cell in an ex-situ test environment. An acoustic speaker was attached to the air line and a frequency was emitted from the speaker in order to integrate the wave into the air flow. Five different frequencies were tested and compared against each other and a constant of 0 Hz. Adding 80 Hz of frequency to the air flow proved to improve the rate of water removal the most at a decrease of 19.8%. A four-piece test section was fabricated out of a clear 0.29" thick piece of polycarbonate. The test section consisted of two inlets, one outlet, and two pressure ports that allowed for conduction of the research. One is used for the injection of air, while the second inlet is used for the injection of water. The outlet is used as an exit for water and air. Finally, the two pressure ports were used for the collection of all the pressure data for the experiment.A test setup was also constructed for the purpose of leveling the high-speed camera with the test section as well as keeping the many working materials as compact and organized as possible. The stand was created using a Ti 8020 erector set. Two separate brackets were constructed: one for the test section, and one for the high-speed camera. The test section was connected to a compressed air tank with a regulator to ensure that the desired velocity of air flow was being inputted into the cell. Additionally, a syringe pump was connected to the section that could also adjust to the desired input rate of water. Finally, two different computers connected to iii the setup: one used for pressure data acquisition, and one used to control the high-speed camera and save the pictures taken."

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