Saccharide Fuel Cell (SFC)

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pinchas Schechner ◽  
Lea Mor ◽  
Shlomo Kimchie ◽  
Hussein Tarabeah ◽  
Carlos Dosoretz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Food Industry ◽  
Urban Forest ◽  
Energy Content ◽  
Environmental Problems ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Demonstration Project ◽  
Satisfactory Performance

A study on the possibility to use saccharides as fuels in a Fuel Cell is presented. The study deals with the abundance of saccharides and ways to extract them from solid organic urban, forest and agricultural wastes, and from food industry effluents. The use of saccharides as fuel is treated from the thermodynamic point of view and compared with other common fuels currently used in fuel cells. Other properties of saccharides, relevant to their use as fuels, such as: safety, transportability, storage, inflammability, poisonous character and volatility, are also considered. The different possible catalytic electrodes needed to create a Saccharide Fuel Cell are discussed. Three options are considered: Microbiological, Enzymatic and Inorganic. None of the available catalytic electrodes has satisfactory performance. We conclude that since sacharides are human friendly, abundant, have high-energy content and are relatively easy to extract, efforts should be given to develop a Saccharide Fuel Cell. These fuel cells have the potential to become the basis of a decentralized power economy and open economical ways to deal with the environmental problems caused by organic wastes. The concept exposed in this paper will be tested in a Pilot-Demonstration Project, planned in the Agan Beit Natufa (ABN) region in Israel. We estimate a production of about 11 GWh/year from this project.

Current progress and performance improvement of Pt/C catalysts for fuel cells

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (46) ◽  
pp. 24284-24306
Author(s):  
Xuefeng Ren ◽  
Yiran Wang ◽  
Anmin Liu ◽  
Zhihong Zhang ◽  
Qianyuan Lv ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Energy Conversion ◽  
Performance Improvement ◽  
Electric Energy ◽  
Energy Conversion Efficiency ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Carnot Cycle ◽  
High Energy Conversion Efficiency ◽  
And Performance

Fuel cell is an electrochemical device, which can directly convert the chemical energy of fuel into electric energy, without heat process, not limited by Carnot cycle, high energy conversion efficiency, no noise and pollution.

Fuel Cells vs. Competing Technologies

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Supramanian Srinivasan ◽  
Lakshmi Krishnan ◽  
Andrew B. Bocarsly ◽  
Kan-Lin Hsueh ◽  
Chiou-Chu Lai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Proton Exchange Membrane ◽  
Direct Methanol Fuel Cells ◽  
Cell Structure ◽  
Proton Exchange ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Direct Methanol ◽  
Energy Conversion Systems ◽  
Competing Technologies

Investments of over $1 B have been made for Fuel Cell R&D over the past five decades, for space and terrestrial applications; the latter includes military, residential power and heating, transportation and remote and portable power. The types of fuel cells investigated for these applications are PEMFCs (proton exchange membrane fuel cells), AFCs (alkaline fuel cells), DMFCs (direct methanol fuel cells), PAFCs (phosphoric acid fuel cells), MCFCs (molten carbon fuel cells), SOFCs (solid oxide fuel cells). Cell structure, operating principles, and characteristics of each type of fuel cell is briefly compared. The performances of fuel cells vs. competing technologies are analyzed. The key issues are which of these energy conversion systems are technologically advanced and economically favorable and can meet the lifetime, reliability and safety requirements. This paper reviews fuel cells vs. competing technologies in each application category from a scientific and engineering point of view.

scholarly journals Electrochemical Performance Improvement of the Catalyst of the Methanol Micro-Fuel Cell Using Carbon Nanotubes

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Kazemi Nasrabadi ◽  
Amir Ebrahimi-Moghadam ◽  
Mohammad Hosein Ahmadi ◽  
Ravinder Kumar ◽  
Narjes Nabipour
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Nanotubes ◽  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Carbon Black ◽  
Oxidation Reaction ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Proton Exchange ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
High Energy Density ◽  
Methanol Oxidation Reaction

Due to low working temperature, high energy density and low pollution, proton exchange fuel cells have been investigated under different operating conditions in different applications. Using platinum catalysts in methanol fuel cells leads to increasing the cost of this kind of fuel cell which is considered as a barrier to the commercialism of this technology. For this reason, a lot of efforts have been made to reduce the loading of the catalyst required on different supports. In this study, carbon black (CB) and carbon nanotubes (CNT) have been used as catalyst supports of the fuel cell as well as using the double-metal combination of platinum-ruthenium (PtRu) as anode electrode catalyst and platinum (Pt) as cathode electrode catalyst. The performance of these two types of electro-catalyst in the oxidation reaction of methanol has been compared based on electrochemical tests. Results showed that the carbon nanotubes increase the performance of the micro-fuel cell by 37% at maximum power density, compared to the carbon black. Based on thee-electrode tests of chronoamperometry and voltammetry, it was found that the oxidation onset potential of methanol for CNT has been around 20% less than CB, leading to the kinetic improvement of the oxidation reaction. The current density of methanol oxidation reaction increased up to 62% in CNT sample compared to CB supported one, therefore the active electrochemical surface area of the catalyst has been increased up to 90% by using CNT compared to CB which shows the significant rise of the electrocatalytic activity in CNT supported catalyst. Moreover, the resistance of the CNT supported sample to poisonous intermediate species has been found 3% more than CB supported one. According to the chronoamperometry test results, it was concluded that the performance and sustainability of the CNT electro-catalyst show remarkable improvement compared to CB electro-catalyst in the long term.

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell flow field designs and approaches for performance enhancement

2019 ◽  
Vol 234 (8) ◽  
pp. 1189-1214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erman Çelik ◽  
İrfan Karagöz
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Flow Field ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte ◽  
Polymer Electrolyte Membrane ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Cell Performance ◽  
High Energy Density ◽  
Field Development ◽  
Electrolyte Membrane

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells are carbon-free electrochemical energy conversion devices that are appropriate for use as a power source on vehicles and mobile devices emerging with their high energy density, lightweight structure, quick startup and lower operating temperature capabilities. However, they need more developments in the aspects of reactant distribution, less pressure drops, precisely balanced water content and heat management to achieve more reliable and higher overall cell performance. Flow field development is one of the most important fields of study to increase cell performance since it has decisive effects on performance parameters, including bipolar plate, and thus fuel cell weight. In this study, recent developments on conventional flow field designs to eliminate their weaknesses and innovative design approaches and flow field architectures are obtained from patent databases, and both numerical and experimental scientific studies. Fundamental designs that create differences are introduced, and their effects on the performance are discussed with regard to origin, objective, innovation strategy of design besides their strength and probable open development ways. As a result, significant enhancements and design strategies on flow field designs in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells are summarized systematically to guide prospective flow field development studies.

Highly Efficient Conversion of Ammonia in Electricity by Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

2006 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 499-502 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. J. J. Dekker ◽  
G. Rietveld
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Energy Density ◽  
High Pressures ◽  
Cell Voltage ◽  
Electrical Current ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
High Energy Density ◽  
Oxide Fuel

Hydrogen is the fuel for fuel cells with the highest cell voltage. A drawback for the use of hydrogen is the low energy density storage capacity, even at high pressures. Liquid fuels such as gasoline and methanol have a high energy density but lead to the emission of the greenhouse gas CO2. Ammonia could be the ideal bridge fuel, having a high energy density at relative low pressure and no (local) CO2 emission. Ammonia as a fuel for the solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) appears to be very attractive, as shown by cell tests with electrolyte supported cells (ESC) as well as anode supported cells (ASC) with an active area of 81cm2. The cell voltage was measured as function of the electrical current, temperature, gas composition and ammonia (NH3) flow. With NH3 as fuel, electrical cell efficiencies up to 70% (LHV) can be achieved at 0.35A∕cm2 and 60% (LHV) at 0.6A∕cm2. The cell degradation during 3000 h of operation was comparable with H2 fueled measurements. Due to the high temperature and the catalytic active Ni∕YSZ anode, NH3 cracks at the anode into H2 and N2 with a conversion of >99.996%. The high NH3 conversion is partly due to the withdrawal of H2 by the electrochemical cell reaction. The remaining NH3 will be converted in the afterburner of the system. The NOx outlet concentration of the fuel cell is low, typically <0.5ppm at temperatures below 950°C and around 4ppm at 1000°C. A SOFC system fueled with ammonia is relative simple compared with a carbon containing fuel, since no humidification of the fuel is necessary. Moreover, the endothermic ammonia cracking reaction consumes part of the heat produced by the fuel cell, by which less cathode cooling air is required compared with H2 fueled systems. Therefore, the system for a NH3 fueled SOFC will have relatively low parasitic power losses and relative small heat exchangers for preheating the cathode air flow.

Fuel Cell-Based MEMS Power Source

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saeed Moghaddam ◽  
Eakkachai Pengwang ◽  
Kevin Lin ◽  
Rich Masel ◽  
Mark Shannon
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Hydrogen Generation ◽  
Control Mechanism ◽  
Membrane Electrode Assembly ◽  
High Energy ◽  
High Energy Density ◽  
Membrane Electrode ◽  
Mems Devices ◽  
Power Sources

The increasing demand for high energy density power sources driven by advancements in portable electronics and MEMS devices has generated significant interest in development of micro fuel cells. One of the major challenges in development of hydrogen micro fuel cells is the fabrication and integration of auxiliary systems for generation and delivery of fuel to the membrane electrode assembly (MEA). In this paper, we report the development of a millimeter-scale (3×3×1 mm3) micro fuel cell with on-board fuel and control system. Hydrogen is generated in the device through reaction between water and a metal hydride. The device incorporates a new control mechanism for hydrogen generation that occupies only 50 nL volume (less than 0.5% of the total device volume). More importantly, the control mechanism is self-regulating and does not consume any power, enabling the micro fuel cell to operate passively, similar to a battery.

Nanomaterials for Fuel Cell and Corrosion Inhibition: A Comprehensive Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malini. S ◽  
K.S. Anantharaju
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Corrosion Inhibition ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Halloysite Nanotubes ◽  
Renewable Energy Resources ◽  
Energy Needs ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Membrane Components

: A Transforming society towards sustainable industrial practices and products chooses to implement “Green nanomaterial”, with high energy efficiency, minimizing the damage to the environment and exploitation of non-renewable energy resources. A combined overview of recent developments in green nanostructured fuel cells with enhanced durability and activity is presented in this review along with the advancements of green Nano materials in the area of corrosion inhibition. Fuel cells being the next generation ecofriendly energy source, the modification to the solid oxide, microbial and alkaline fuel cell through green nanomaterial are discussed with an emphasis on electrodes, electrolyte, electrode catalysts and membrane components. In addition, the role of green nanomaterial in the form of nano metal oxides, hydroxides, grains, dendrimers, gels, composites, functionalized graphene, halloysite nanotubes and ionic liquids in greening the phenomenon of corrosion inhibition, investigated by various researchers is briefly addressed. As no single engineered green nanomaterial is emerging as unparalleled and most viable, they are evaluated according to their economic impact, diverse properties, durability and stability. Eventually, these materials with improvement in biocompatibility, solubility, fabrication and handling techniques are predicted to change the environmental and occupational scenario, with some of them already have been found to impact upon the altering global energy needs.

Challenges Facing Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology to Replace Combustion Engines

2013 ◽  
Vol 724-725 ◽  
pp. 715-722 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. K. Calay ◽  
Mohamad Y. Mustafa ◽  
Mahmoud F. Mustafa
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Internal Combustion Engines ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Combustion Engines ◽  
Cell Technology ◽  
Fuel Cell Technology ◽  
Heat Engines ◽  
The Future

In this paper; technological challenges and commercialization barriers for Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell are presented. Initially, the criteria that must be met by the energy source of the future is presented from the point of view of the authors. Sustainability, high energy content and combustion independence are recognized as the main decisive factor of future fuels, which are all met by hydrogen, consequently the application of fuel cells as combustion free direct energy converters of the future. Fuel cell technology as an alternative to heat engines is discussed in the context of the current status of fuel cells in various applications. Finally, the challenges facing fuel cell technology to replace heat engines from the commercial and research points of view are presented and discussed supported by current trends in the industry. It is concluded that there have been several advancements and breakthrough in materials, manufacturing and fabricating techniques of fuel cells since the eighties, many of these challenges which are associated with cost and durability still exist when compared with the already matured technology of internal combustion engines. Any effort to achieve these goals would be a significant contribution to the technology of the fuel cell.

Bipolar Plates for PEMFCs

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
C. A. C. Sequeira ◽  
L. Amaral
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Manufacturing Process ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Proton Exchange ◽  
High Energy Density ◽  
Bipolar Plates ◽  
Promising Alternative ◽  
Power Sources ◽  
Fuel Cell Stack

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) have many advantages among the various types of fuel cells, such as high energy density, low temperature operation, near-zero pollution, and quick starting. Thereby, PEMFCs have been considered as the most promising alternative power sources in the transportation and stationary fields. Among the components of PEMFCs, the bipolar plates are the most representative regarding cost and volume, however, they have relevant functions on the fuel cell stack. There are about 500 bipolar plates in a PEMFC for a typical passenger car and, thus, the commercialization of the fuel cell technology becomes quite challenging. Important key aspects for a successful fuel cell stack are the design and the manufacturing process of the bipolar plate. For efficient mass production, the cycle time of the process is even more important than the material costs. It is, therefore, very important that the used material is appropriate for a fast manufacturing process. Recent developments are overcoming these issues, leading to improvements on the overall fuel cell performance and durability.

scholarly journals Alloying–realloying enabled high durability for Pt–Pd-3d-transition metal nanoparticle fuel cell catalysts

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhi-Peng Wu ◽  
Dominic T. Caracciolo ◽  
Yazan Maswadeh ◽  
Jianguo Wen ◽  
Zhijie Kong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Noble Metals ◽  
Function Analysis ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Reduction Reaction ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Metal Nanoparticle ◽  
High Durability ◽  
Alloy Catalysts

AbstractAlloying noble metals with non-noble metals enables high activity while reducing the cost of electrocatalysts in fuel cells. However, under fuel cell operating conditions, state-of-the-art oxygen reduction reaction alloy catalysts either feature high atomic percentages of noble metals (>70%) with limited durability or show poor durability when lower percentages of noble metals (<50%) are used. Here, we demonstrate a highly-durable alloy catalyst derived by alloying PtPd (<50%) with 3d-transition metals (Cu, Ni or Co) in ternary compositions. The origin of the high durability is probed by in-situ/operando high-energy synchrotron X-ray diffraction coupled with pair distribution function analysis of atomic phase structures and strains, revealing an important role of realloying in the compressively-strained single-phase alloy state despite the occurrence of dealloying. The implication of the finding, a striking departure from previous perceptions of phase-segregated noble metal skin or complete dealloying of non-noble metals, is the fulfilling of the promise of alloy catalysts for mass commercialization of fuel cells.

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