Simulation of ionomer membrane fatigue under mechanical and hygrothermal loading conditions

Understanding the fatigue lifetime of common perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) ionomer membranes under fluctuating hygrothermal conditions is essential for the development of durable fuel cell technologies. For this purpose, a finite element based fatigue lifetime prediction model is developed based on an elastic-plastic constitutive model combined with a Smith-Watson-Topper (SWT) fatigue formulation. The model is validated against previously reported experimental results for a membrane under cyclic mechanical loadings. The validated model is then utilized to investigate the membrane fatigue lifetime in ex-situ applications under cyclic humidity and temperature conditions. The simulations suggest that the membrane fatigue lifetime is shorter under fluctuating humidity loadings than for temperature loadings: Additionally, the membrane fatigue lifetime is found to be more sensitive to the amplitude of the strain oscillations than to the mean strain under hygrothermal cycling. Most notably, the model predicts that simultaneous humidity and temperature cycling can exacerbate the fatigue process and reduce the fatigue lifetime by several orders of magnitude compared to isolated humidity or temperature cycling. The combination of measured mechanical fatigue data and the present numerical model provides a useful toolkit for analysis of membrane fatigue due to hygrothermal variations, which can be costly and time-consuming when addressed experimentally.