Finally (Figure ), an MPL with a thickness of 80 μm was attached along the negative z-axis. It is noteworthy that the MPL was assumed to be a porous, homogeneous, and isotropic layer characterized by thermal and electrical conductivities of 0.25 W m -1 K -1 and 1400 S m - 1 , respectively. These values are adopted from the work of Hannach et al. Subsequently, the electrical conductivity of the combined GDL-MPL structures were then reevaluated. This recalculation served as the foundation for determining the contact resistance between two such layers. The contact resistance, 𝐶𝑅, was quantified using equation ( ):