To tackle the non-uniform distribution of alkaline electrolyte across the corrugated bipolar plates during alkaline water electrolysis process for hydrogen production
the present work undertakes a structural optimization of the bipolar plates in a 5 Nm³/h alkaline electrolyzer. Computational fluid dynamics was employed to resolve the electrolyte velocity field under representative operating conditions. Numerical results indicate that the high-velocity zone is concentrated along the central axis of the existing corrugated plates
undermining flow uniformity. Two complementary remedies are therefore proposed. First
inclined guide grooves are introduced at the electrolyte inlet to laterally disperse the incoming flow. Second
the conventional spherical protrusions and recesses are replaced by ellipsoidal corrugations that alternately split and refocus the electrolyte stream. Simulations demonstrate that the combination of slanted inlet grooves and ellipsoidal surface topography markedly improves flow uniformity across the entire bipolar plate.
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