A fuel cell is mainly used to provide electricity from chemical reactions. It harnesses the chemical energy of hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity without combustion one of the basic types of fuel cells is the Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC). This section will give a general description of its parts, how do they function and the material they are consisted of. 3.2 Background Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells operate at relatively low temperatures, around 80°C (176°F). Low-temperature operation allows them to start fast (less warm-up time) and results in less wear on system components, which result in better durability. However, it requires that a noble-metal catalyst (typically platinum) be used to separate the hydrogen's electrons and protons, adding cost to the system. PEM fuel cells are used primarily for transportation applications and some stationary applications. Due to their fast startup time, low sensitivity to orientation, and favorable power-to-weight ratio, PEM fuel cells are particularly suitable for use in passenger vehicles, such as cars and buses. A significant barrier to using these fuel cells in vehicles is hydrogen storage. Most fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) powered by pure hydrogen must store the hydrogen on-board as a compressed gas in tanks. Due to the low-energy density of hydrogen, it is difficult to store enough hydrogen on-board to allow vehicles to travel the same distance as gasoline-powered vehicles before refueling. This increases costs and maintenance. They deliver high-power density and offer the advantages of low weight and volume, compared with other fuel cells. 3.3 PEMFC structure Figure PEMFC- 1 Polymer ... ... middle of paper ... ...for the fuel cell. [Lister & McLean ] • Electrolyte membrane: The electrolyte membrane is usually made of Nafion because its availability, low cost, low permeability, good chemical stability and strength. However, it is expensive. [Lister & McLean ] • Catalyst: The most widely used catalyst for PEM fuel cells is Platinum. Platinum catalyst layers are rough and porous to give larger surface area for Oxygen and Hydrogen to react with Pt. They can be as particles as well. [Wang 2011] • Current collectors, GDL and bipolar plates: Current collectors are made of graphitic materials due to its good conduction. GDL gas diffusion layers are made of carbon paper, which has low electronic resistance in order to provide maximum electronic contact and prevent water flooding. Bipolar plates are made of either graphite sot thermosets materials. [Lister & McLean ]
In most cases, hydrogen cannot be stored by itself. Because of this, hydrogen is usually stored in forms of hydrides. One example of a hydride is called a fuel cell. Although other forms of storing hydrogen are found to be difficult, Eisenstien (2000) has found that the cell is not a very complicated device (Eisenstien, 2000, p.22). This is because all that there is to do is to pump hydrogen into one side and then pump oxygen on the other (Eisenstien, March 2000, p.22). This results to the gases combining to form energy and water vapor, which can be used to run electric motors (Eisenstien, March 2000, p.22). Another type of hydride is called a reformer. A reformer is simply a chemical pla...
All polymer host has some major advantages for which their application in electrochemical devices are still continuing. Also these polymer have some disadvantages and to improve the
In the search engine “Google dictionary” the author announces, “Fuel cell: a cell producing an electric current directly from a chemical reaction.” Fuel cells were thought of in 1839 by Sir William Grove who was known as “Father of the Fuel Cell.” In the article “History of
of Britain. The main type of hydrogen fuel cell is the Polymer Electrolyte Membrane, or Proton
For our project, our client, gave us the task of designing and developing a teaching aid that uses hydrogen to power a mechanical device. This task led us to the construction of a hybrid fuel cell/battery-powered model hovercraft. The hovercraft, which we call “Hovercraftica”, uses a battery to power the lift fan and two hydrogen fuel cells to power the fan that provides thrust. Hovercraftica is a self-contained demonstration unit with every aspect of its propulsion onboard. The hydrogen for the fuel cells is produced through the electrolysis of water. This is achieved by collecting light energy via a solar panel and sending it through the fuel cells.
Fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas are currently the world’s largest energy supply sources. However, all of it is non-renewable resources which means that it will take extremely long time to be formed and with the huge amount of consumption rate, one day the world will ran out of its main energy source. Therefore, alternative energy sources are needed to cut off the dependence on fossil fuels. One of the best alternative energy sources is ethanol. Ethanol is a renewable energy source as it uses sunlight, which will last almost forever, as a part of its production process. Ethanol is also an environmental-friendly energy source because it helps in reducing smog pollution and carbon dioxide emissions by up to 50%. This makes ethanol a perfect alternative energy source. Ethanol can act as a raw material for polymers such as polyethylene through the dehydration reaction. This dehydration reaction has been known and popular for many decades because of its simplicity, the reaction process is also claimed to be not cost-competitive, which is why ethanol can be used as a raw material for polymers.
The objective of this research is to synthesize the compound 3-diazonium-4-(trifluorovinyloxy)-perfluorobutanesulfonyl fluoride zwitterion for polymerization and use as the electrolyte in Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells. As cleaner energy sources, PEM fuel cells produce 90% less pollution than fossil fuels. The target monomers are hypothesized to have three major components, these components are an aryl diazonium zwitterion, an aryl perfluoro vinyl ether moiety and a perfluoroalkyl (aryl) sulfonamide pendant. In addition, the compound’s perfluoroalkyl backbone increases the thermal and chemical stability and can increase the proton conductivity of the polymer. The diazonium zwitterion should chemically bond the monomer or polymer
The performance of the PEM fuel cell is evaluated by a thermodynamic analysis, which is of two types, viz., energy analysis and exergy analysis. The energy analysis is made by applying the first law of thermodynamics to the fuel cell. The efficiency is defined by considering the heat input to the fuel cell and the work output from the fuel cell. In the exergy analysis the fuel cell and the surrounding environment are considered together. The efficiency is defined based on the maximum or available energy which is calculated by considering the entropy lost to the environment. Thus the exergy analysis takes into account the second law of thermodynamics in addition to the first law. In this chapter a theoretical analysis
Fuel cells have reached a market of around $3 billion worldwide in the year 2000. A mere one percent of global vehicle market, 450,000 vehicles, would mean another $2 billion more. Another recent study projected global demand for transportation fuel cells in the year 2007 at $9 billion.
One of the most commonly used dielectric materials used to construct dielectric EAPs is VHB 4910 tape by 3M as shown in figure~
A H2/O2 proton−exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is a clean, sustainable energy source and suitable for the operation of small electronic device [1]. Among many problems that still exist for PEMFC, the sluggish reactions at the cathode electrode and poor mass transport of protons and electron decrease the fuel cell performance by increasing the activation overvoltage, or activation loss [2]. This problem can, however, be solved by raising the fuel-cell operating temperature [3], but only up to a certain temperature before the deformation or degradatation of polymeric components occurs. Thus, the reduction in the activation overvoltage for low-temperature fuel cell operation is still necessary when the PEMFC components are made of polymer.
The critical components of super capacitors include the electrodes, electrolyte and the separator. While characteristics of electrode materials for super capacitors include high cyclability, long term stability including high surface areas, resistance to electrochemical oxidation/reduction. The focus is made to be, on achieving large surface areas with low ‘matrix’ resistivity. Carbonaceous materials have seems to be particularly popular owing to their
Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements on the earth. It can be found in the oceans as well as the atmosphere. Over the last few years, talk about the future of hydrogen power has grown from a whisper to a roar. The use of hydrogen is not just the burning of the gas, but of its use in a fuel cell. Fuel cells might be the device that causes the extinction of the internal combustion engine. A fuel cell is a device that produces electricity from a fuel and an oxidizer, a substance that combines with the fuel. The fuel and oxidizer react chemically at two separate electrodes to produce the direct electric current; These cells use hydrogen as the fuel and oxygen as the oxidizer. Hydrogen power could be the silver bullet to the current and future energy situation.
GO is verified to be a nano-material with amphiphilic nature, as the water molecules are adsorbed initially at the hydrophilic terminal (hydroxides), then quickly diffused among the hydrophobic carbon core, developing a water channel that improve permeation flux. Once water molecules infiltrate over the GO layers, they built up to arise a single layer configuration that drives the consecutive layers apart from each other, resulting in the increase of the d-spacing (Hung et al., 2014). The unique properties of GO-based water desalination membrane could open the door of opportunities to overcome the challenges, in order to make clean water easily reached around the earth.