A novel high current pulse activation method for proton exchange membrane fuel cell

The performance of the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is not the best when it is manufactured. It must be activated before it can be put into use. In this paper, a single-cell-based rapid activation method using high current pulses was proposed. The high current pulse activation method used the rectangular pulse current to discharge the PEMFC by adjusting the peak current, pulse period, pulse duty cycle, and cycle times. The polarization curve, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry tests were carried out before and after each activation cycle. The results show that the performance of the PEMFC reaches the best state after the first activation cycle. The whole activation process only needs 1 h. The effectiveness of the high current pulse activation method is verified.