Performance optimization of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells by application of structured cathode electrodes

The purpose of this thesis is to improve the performance of polymer electrolyte fuel cells by segmenting the cathode electrode. Reasons for that approach are that the conditions within the active area of a fuel cell are locally different. These varying conditions lead to an inhomogeneous current density distribution, meaning that the performance within the active area cannot be optimized over the whole surface of the electrode. One possibility to overcome local differences is by a tailored MEA (membrane electrode assembly) design.