Hydrogen Fuel Cells

Energy of the Future

By Dr Lisa Bushby
[Aug 22, 2006]
President George W Bush believes that hydrogen is the fuel of the future. In 2003 he
announced an initiative worth $1.2 billion over a period of five years to fund research
into the use of hydrogen fuel cells. The EU and Member States agree and are
estimated to have supported activities in this field to the tune of 600 million euros
for the 2002-2006 period.

The biggest driving force (no pun intended) behind the massive investment is the
auto industry, which relies on oil-fuelled cars, but the electronics industry, which
currently uses limited-lifelithium ion batteries, is also making significant
contributions.

Problems with Current Technologies

There are many disadvantages associated with running internal combustion engines,
not least economic issues. The price of oil is extremely volatile and the last 12
months have seen the cost per barrel rocket. In today's political climate the trend
looks likely to continue upwards. Furthermore, burning gasoline releases carbon
dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2),nitrogen oxides (NOx), and
hydrocarbons, amongst other gases, and particulate matter into the atmosphere,
which cause serious environmental damage. But it is not just the environmental
effects of harmful emissions - public health is also being compromised. For example,
nitrogen oxides can react with volatile organic compounds in the atmosphere to form
smog, which is known to increase respiratory problems in humans and carbon
dioxide is a "greenhouse gas" that contributes to global warming.

Electronic devices such as laptops, cell phones, mp3 players, etc. are powered by
lithium batteries, but these also have inherent problems. Lithium ion batteries
operate using salts of lithium to provide conductivity, they can then be recharged by
introducing an electric current in the opposite direction. The system returns to its
charged state. However, because recharging does not completely return the cell to
its previous charged state, the battery deteriorates with time, i.e. lithium ion
batteries have a limited lifespan.

The rising cost of oil, a more environmentally-conscious public, and fears that oil
supplies will dry up within 50 years are forcing change. Fuel cell technology is seen
as a viable alternative.

Fuel Cell Operation Mechanism

Fuel cells are essentially electrochemical cells and operate following the same basic
mechanism as everyday batteries. However, unlike batteries, where all of the
chemicals used in the cell are contained and when the reaction is complete the
battery is dead, fuel cells have a constant flow of fresh chemicals into the cell and so
in theory have an unlimited life.

Hydrogen fuel cells, which are the most commonly used, convert flows of hydrogen
and oxygen into water (H2O) and produce electricity in the process.
At the anode, hydrogen is forced through a catalyst (usuallyplatinum powder) where
it is ionized: 2H2 ==> 4H+ + 4e-. Theelectrons then pass through an external circuit,
where their flow can be harnessed as electricity, on their way to the cathode.

At the cathode, oxygen reacts with the products from the anode (the protons and
electrons) to produce water: O2 + 4H+ + 4e-==> 2H2O. Along with heat, this is the
only by-product of the hydrogen fuel cell: the reactants are normally fully utilized.

Aside from electricity and heat, which itself can be captured and used, water is the
only product from a hydrogen fuel cell. Of course, this is harmless and so the process
has huge environmental advantages over polluting combustion engines. However,
water builds up in the cell and so it must be removed periodically otherwise it will
saturate. This is usually achieved through a water pump or separator.

As explained, fuel cells generate electricity through a chemical process. This means
that they are not subject to the Carnot Limit (a theoretical limit on the efficiency of
an engine based on the flow of heat between two reservoirs), and that they can
effectively extract more energy from fuel than combustion-based methods.
Traditional internal combustion engines typically have efficiencies of around 30%,
whereas fuel cells can achieve 40-70% efficiency.

Return on Investment
There is considerable progress being made, and governments and organisations are
beginning to see the results from the huge amount of research they have supported
into fuel cell technologies.

Typically cars need 15,000 watts to run - achieving this wattage at an acceptable
temperature has proved a significant challenge for those working in this area.
However, in the autumn of 2005, engineers sponsored by Honda at Stanford
University announced that they had produced a fuel cell, which delivers a power
density of 400mW/cm2 at around 400°C, i.e. a fuel cell stack with a total membrane
surface area of 4m2 could produce sufficient power to run a car.

Stanford University's solid oxide membrane-based hydrogen fuel cell effectively cut
the operating temperature of the fuel cell in half without compromising on any power
making the likelihood of a commercially-viable fuel cell-driven car much more of a
possibility.

Also in 2005 Honda's second-generation fuel cell vehicle (FCV) was certified by both
the US Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board for
commercial use and is the world's most advanced FCV in daily operation. Other auto
makers are hot on the heels of Honda in terms of their fuel cell vehicles and so it is
likely that we will see more FCVs on the roads in coming years.

Another exciting development in the application of fuel cell technology is the use of
fuel cell power plants for electric power generation. Siemens, Ballard, and FuelCell
Energy Inc, among others, are all developing these, albeit in some cases on a small
scale (e.g. for home power generation). Most fuel systems convert natural gas or
biofuels into hydrogen for processing with oxygen to generate multiple megawatts of
useable electricity.

While existing fuel cell technology is already being applied in the auto industry and
by power plant operators, electronics manufacturers are nearing commercialization
of their products. For example, Panasonic and Toshiba both demonstrated a direct
methanol fuel cell for laptop computers at the International Consumer Electronics
Show earlier this year, and MTI Micro has recently signed an agreement with
Samsung to develop a series of prototypes for Samsung's cell phones operating
using amethanol fuel cell.

Conclusion
Along with the hydrogen fuel cells' high efficiency (from 40-70%), the possibility of
utilizing both heat and electricity from them will make a significant contribution to
reducing atmospheric emissions. For example, a fuel cell operating at 60% efficiency
would emit 35-60% less CO2 at the fossil fuel stage and 80% less from hydrogen.

Energy sources of the future will have to be cleaner and more efficient than current
sources - fuel cells fulfill these requirements. Several challenges remain before we
will see wide-spread commercialization, mainly because of restrictions with size,
cost, reliability and safety, but an environmentally-friendly source of power is
definitely on its way.