On May 13-14, the 15th Annual National Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Conference, sponsored by the Department of Higher Education of the Ministry of Education, was held at the Nanhu Campus of China University of Mining and Technology. The Optimization Design of Surface Microstructure of PEM Fuel Cell for Vehicles Based on Water and Gas Transportation Model, directed by Prof. Yin Bifeng and Prof. Jia Hekun of the School of Automotive, and presided over by Chen Xin, majoring in Energy and Power Engineering of Class 2018, was selected as a project of the reform achievement display (the only one in the whole university) after a layer-by-layer selection process. Mr. Jia Zhihong of the Academic Affairs Office and the representatives of the students of the selected project participated in the annual exhibition and communication.

Aiming at the development trend of high power density of automotive proton exchange membrane fuel cells, the project has carried out active design of surface functional microstructures of the three major components, namely, gas diffusion layer, flow channel, and proton exchange membrane, in order to regulate the flow characteristics of the two phases of water and gas, which has effectively improved the comprehensive performance of the fuel cell, and laid a solid theoretical foundation for the independent development of high-performance fuel cells for automotive applications. In the course of the project, 3 SCI papers, 1 core journal paper, 2 conference papers, and 1 paper won the best paper award of the International Energy Conference have been published. The project has applied for 6 invention patents, of which 4 are authorized. The university has won 6 awards, including the silver medal of the 7th China International "Internet+" Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, the silver medal of the "Challenge Cup" Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition of Jiangsu Province, and the third prize of the National Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Competition.