Normally closed electrostatic microvalve with pressure balance mechanism for portable fuel cell application. Part I: Design and simulation

Kazushi Yoshida, Shuji Tanaka, Yosuke Hagihara, Shigeaki Tomonari, Masayoshi Esashi

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This paper describes the design and simulation of an electrostatic microvalve which controls fuel in a portable direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) system. The microvalve adopted a novel pressure balance mechanism to achieve normally closed operation against pressurized fuel. We established a theoretical model and method to simulate the performance of the microvalve, and designed the microvalve which controls methanol with a supply pressure of 30 kPa at a driving voltage of 36 V. This specification matches a 5 W class DMFC under development. Crown

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)299-306
Number of pages8
JournalSensors and Actuators A: Physical
Volume157
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2010 Feb

Keywords

  • Electrostatic actuator
  • Fuel cell
  • Microvalve

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