The Fuel For Tomorrow
Jul 14, 2015
The Fuel For Tomorrow
What is a Fuel Cell?
A device that generates electricity by a chemical reaction
Uses Oxygen or another oxidizing agent
Another fuel, generally Hydrogen.
Electrochemical process Methanol Based Fuel Cell
Mechanism
Requires:
An anode
A Cathode
An Electrolyte
A Catalyst
Fuel
Oxidant
Emphasis from the US Government
The main reasons has everything to do with oil
Political Factors
The Global Warming Scenario
Fuel cell technologies are an attractive alternative to oil dependency
Give off no pollution, and produce pure water as a byproduct
Renewable, environmentally-friendly ways of producing hydrogen in the future
Rely on domestic sources for energy production
Welsh Physicist, William Grove was the pioneer of Fuel Cell Technology.
In 1955, W. Thomas Grubb further modified it.
3 years later, Leonard Niedrach, devised a way of depositing platinum onto the membrane, served as catalyst for the necessary hydrogen oxidation and oxygen reduction reactions.
Project Gemini , 1965, prelude to the Apollo moon missions.
The first commercial use of fuel
cells was in NASA space programs to generate power.
The Apollo moon missions was powered single handedly by fuel cells.
Fuel cells were a vital component of the power system.
Armstrong describes as “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
The International Space Station
Fuel cells provide drinking water to the astronauts on board.
Green Flag for fuel cells, yellow for batteries.
Before launch, electrical power is provided by ground power supplies.
Three fuel cell power plants generate all of the electrical power for the vehicle from launch through landing rollout.
The three fuel cell power plants are individually coupled to the reactant (hydrogen and oxygen) distribution subsystem, the heat rejection subsystem, the potable water storage subsystem, and the electrical power distribution and control subsystem.
The fuel cell power plants generate heat and water as by-products of electrical power generation.
Alkaline Fuel Cells
Operates on compressed hydrogen and oxygen.
Efficiency is about 70 percent, and operating temperature is 50 to 100 degrees C.
Used in Apollo spacecraft to provide both electricity and drinking water.
They require pure hydrogen fuel, however, and have platinum electrode catalysts.
Solid Oxide fuel cells
Uses a hard, ceramic compound of metal oxides as electrolyte
Efficiency is about 60 percent
Operating temperatures are about 1,000 degrees C, so no reformer is required for extracting hydrogen from fuel
Utility applications
Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell
Uses phosphoric acid as the electrolyte
Efficiency ranges from 40 to 80 percent
Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
Work with a polymer electrolyte in the form of a thin, permeable sheet
Efficiency is about 40 to 50 percent
Suitable for homes and cars
Molten Carbonate fuel cells
Uses high-temperature compounds of salt carbonates as electrolyte
Efficiency ranges from 60 to 80 percent, and operating temperature is about 650 degrees C
Developed for natural gas and coal-based power plants to generate power for industry and military use
In 2003, President Bush announced a program called the Hydrogen Fuel Initiative (HFI).
Aims to develop hydrogen, fuel cell and infrastructure technologies to make fuel-cell vehicles practical and cost-effective by 2020.
The United States has dedicated more than one billion dollars to fuel cell research and development.
Engineers replaced the engine of the GM HydroGen3 with a microwave-oven-sized fuel-cell stack
Pollution reduction is the primary goal.
If the fuel cell is powered with pure hydrogen, it has the potential to be up to 80-percent efficient.
A reasonable number for the efficiency of the motor/inverter is about 80 percent.
That gives an overall efficiency of about 64 percent.
Honda's FCX concept vehicle has 60-percent energy efficiency
If electricity for the car was generated at a power plant that used a combustion process then only about 40 percent of the fuel required by the power plant was converted into electricity.
The process of charging the car requires the conversion of alternating current (AC) power to direct current (DC) power. This process has an efficiency of about 90 percent.
That gives an overall efficiency of 26 percent.
Generation by a hydroelectric plant for instance, the efficiency of the electric car is about 65 percent.
GASOLINE POWERED VEHICLE BATTERY POWERED ELECRRIC VEHICLE
Overall efficiency of an automotive gas engine is about 20 percent
Has an overall efficiency of about 72 percent
Boosting fuel cell efficiency is now top priority.
Combining fuel cell and battery-powered vehicles.
Ford Motors and Airstream are developing a concept vehicle powered by a hybrid fuel cell drive train named the HySeries Drive.
The vehicle uses a lithium battery to power the car, while the fuel cell recharges the battery.
Clean Energy Source By-product involves water and heat
High Efficiency Average: 60% Cogeneration: 80% More efficient than combustion engines
Noise Reduction No combustion required- pumps and compressors produce small
vibrations which are relatively silent
Cost Expensive Catalyst cost (usually platinum)
Durability A 100 degrees Celsius temperature target is required in order for a fuel
cell to have a higher tolerance to impurities in fuel
Infrastructure Hydrogen generation and delivery infrastructure
Storage and Other Considerations Safety Hazards associated with Hydrogen
The hydrogen-powered Honda FCX Clarity
Available to the people of Southern California
The DaimlerChrysler NECAR fuel cell vehicle drives along a 17-mile stretch of coastline
Establishment of hydrogen filling stations
An initiative by SHELL
Safety Hazards Hydrogen is highly flammable and combustible Hydrogen leakage may cause explosions Pure hydrogen is poisonous
Efforts are under way to develop fuel-cell batteries that would use hydrogen or other fuels that can be converted to hydrogen.
These mini power plants would produce electricity directly from hydrogen and oxygen, with the only discharge being water vapor
A FUEL CELL THAT RUNS ON WASTE
Developed by environmental engineers at Pennsylvania State University
Runs on wastewater
Uses microbes to break down organic matter
The matter in turn releases hydrogen and electrons
Output is heat and pure water
Hydrogen is a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels
Chemical engineers are heavily involved in the development of a variety of safe and technically feasible systems to produce hydrogen cost efficiently on a small scale
Fuel cells for commercial use
For vehicles such as this hybrid-powered (battery and fuel cell) forklift, that contains its own hydrogen generation system
Nuvera Fuel Cells
Highlights: Low-pressure and low-temperature
fuel processors able to produce hydrogen from hydrocarbon fuels.
Use of coal-derived synthetic gas as a source of hydrogen
Extraction of hydrogen from fossil fuels
An imaginative array of new processes based on:
Water splitting,
Biomass and wastewater reforming, and
Renewable electrolysis
Stationary Supplemental generators Distributed power sources
Transportation Fuel Cell Vehicle Hybrid Vehicles Future: trains, airplanes, boats
Consumer Electronics Laptops, cell phones, video recorders
Made by Debajyoti Bose (CH/10/24)