Recently, one review paper entitled “Bubble evolution and transport in PEM water electrolysis: Mechanism, impact, and management” was published at Progress in Energy and Combustion Science (IF=35.339). The first author is Shu Yuan, a PhD student at Institute of Fuel Cells from School of Mechanical Engineering, and the corresponding authors are Prof. Junliang Zhang and Prof. Xiaohui Yan.

The structure of a typical proton exchange water electrolysis cell and the bubble issues within it

Gas bubbles are known to influence the PEM water electrolysis (PEMWE) cell performance significantly, but a full picture of bubble behaviors and their impacts on cell performance has been lacking. This review presents the fundamental understanding on bubble evolution, including the mechanisms of nucleation, growth and detachment processes within the catalyst layer of PEMWE, and it provides a comprehensive overview of the bubble transport processes, including the processes within catalyst layer, porous transport layer, flow field and at their interfaces. The effects of bubbles on cell performance and their corresponding mechanisms are further discussed. Then the state-of-the-art bubble management methods to mitigate bubble-induced performance losses are summarized. Due to the similarity between PEMWE and anion exchange membrane water electrolysis (AEMWE), the related discussions has been extended for AEMWE. Lastly, it presents principles of bubble management, followed by an outlook of scientific questions and suggestions for future research priorities. This work offers the scientific guidance for the development of next-generation electrolyzer.

Paper Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pecs.2023.101075