A lack of standards for testing polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells – the most attractive type of fuel cells for powering vehicles – has hampered objective comparative assessment of their performance and durability under operating conditions and hence of their technological progress. By proposing a test methodology including a set of representative operating conditions and getting European industry and research stakeholders to agree on it, the JRC has helped fill the gap.
The resulting harmonised test protocols allow the evaluation of the performance and durability of PEM fuel cells by focusing on the membrane-electrode assemblies (MEA), which constitute the heart of a fuel cell.
See more: ec.europa.eu/jrc