Three-dimensional simulation of a molten carbonate fuel cell stack under transient conditions

The three-dimensional distributions of the crucial parameters in a molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) stack under transient conditions have been investigated by using dynamic simulation. The major processes with regard to an MCFC's safe and efficient operation in power-generation systems, such as the mass and heat transport, chemical reactions and electrical power generation, are formulated in a three-dimensional, time-dependent form using the computational-fluid-dynamics (CFD) technique. In this paper, the model performance is demonstrated by applying it to calculate the distributions of current density and temperature under a step change. The simulation results at steady state are consistent with the experimental data and the analytical results from the literature.