#1.

working principle of each systems

A fuel cell is an electrochemical device that produces electricity
without combustion by combining hydrogen and oxygen to produce water
and heat. Fuel cell Discovered German Scientist G H Shoenbein First
developed by William Grove In 1839, Grove was experimenting on
electrolysis (the process by which water is split into hydrogen and
oxygen by an electric current), when he observed that combining the
same elements could also produce an electric current 1930s -1950s
Francis Thomas Bacon, a British scientist, worked on developing
alkaline fuel cells. He demonstrated a working stack in 1958. The
technology was licensed to Pratt and Whitney where it was utilized
for the Apollo spacecraft fuel cells. Advantages over conventional

Fuel cell systems are usually compared to internal combustion engines

and batteries and offer unique advantages and disadvantages with
respect to them. Fuel cell systems offer the following advantages:
Fuel cell systems operate without pollution when run on Key Points &
Notes pure hydrogen, the only by-products being pure water and heat.
When run on hydrogen-rich reformate gas mixtures, some harmful
emissions result although they are less than those emitted by an
internal combustion engine using conventional fossil fuels. To be
fair, internal combustion engines that combust lean mixtures of
hydrogen and air also result in extremely low pollution levels that
derive mainly from the incidental burning of lubricating oil. • Fuel
cell systems operate at higher thermodynamic efficiency than heat
engines. Heat engines, such as internal combustion engines and
turbines, convert chemical energy into heat by way of combustion and
use that heat to do useful work. The optimum (or “Carnot”)
thermodynamic efficiency of a heat engine is known to be:
This formula indicates that the higher the temperature of the hot gas
entering the engine and the lower the temperature of the cold outlet
gas after expansion, the higher the thermodynamic efficiency. Thus,
in theory, the upper temperature can be raised an arbitrary amount in
order to achieve any desired efficiency, since the outlet temperature
cannot be lower than ambient. However, in a real heat engine the
upper temperature is limited by material considerations. Furthermore,
in an internal combustion engine, the inlet temperature is the
operating temperature of the engine, which is very much lower than
the ignition temperature. Since fuel cells do not use combustion,
their efficiency is not linked to their maximum operating
temperature. As a result, the efficiency of the power conversion step
(the actual electrochemical reaction as opposed to the actual
combustion reaction) can be significantly higher. The electrochemical
reaction efficiency is not the same as overall system efficiency as
discussed in Section 4.1.2. The efficiency characteristics of fuel
cells compared with other electric power generating systems are shown
in Figure 4-2
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In addition to having higher specific thermal efficiency than heat
engines, fuel cells also exhibit higher part-load efficiency and do
not display a sharp drop in efficiency as the powerplant size
decreases. Heat engines operate with highest efficiency when run at
their design speed and exhibit a rapid decrease in efficiency at part
load. Fuel cells, like batteries, exhibit higher efficiency at part
load than at full load and with less variation over the entire
operating range. Fuel cells are modular in construction with
consistent efficiency regardless of size. Reformers, however, perform
less efficiently at part load so that overall system efficiency
suffers when used in conjunction with fuel cells. • Fuel cells
exhibit good load-following characteristics. Fuel cells, like
batteries, are solid state devices that react chemically and
instantly to changes in load. Fuel cell systems, however, are
comprised of predominantly mechanical devices each of which has its
own response time to changes in load demand. Nonetheless, fuel cell
systems that operate on pure hydrogen tend to have excellent overall
response. Fuel cell systems that operate on reformate using an on-
board reformer, however, can be sluggish, particularly if steam
reforming techniques are used.
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When used as an electrical energy generating device, Key Points &
Notes fuel cells require fewer energy transformations than those
associated with a heat engine. When used as a mechanical energy
generating device, fuel cells require an equal number of conversions,
although the specific transformations are different. Every energy
transformation has an associate energy loss so that the fewer
transformations there are, the better the efficiency. Thus fuel cells
are more ideally suited to applications that require electrical
energy as the end product, rather than mechanical energy. Comparative
energy transformations for fuel cells, batteries and heat engines are
shown in Figure 4-3.
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Fuel cell systems suitable Key Points & Notes for automotive
applications operate at low temperatures (typically less than 212
ºF/100 ºC). This is an advantage in that the fuel cells require
little warmup time, high temperature hazards are reduced, and the
thermodynamic efficiency of the electrochemical reaction is
inherently better. This is a disadvantage in that medium-grade waste
heat is harder to expel (especially in hot climates) so that cooling
systems must be larger, and the electrochemical reaction proceeds
more slowly than at high temperatures. Reformers used in conjunction
with fuel cells operate at high temperatures and therefore may
require prolonged warmup periods. • Fuel cell systems can be used in
co-generation applications. In addition to electrical power, fuel
cells generate pure hot water and medium-grade heat, both of which
can potentially be used in association with domestic or industrial
applications. When this is done, the overall efficiency of the
combined systems increases. • Fuel cell systems do not require
tuning. • Fuel cell systems do not require recharging. Rather, fuel
cell systems must be re-fueled, which is faster than charging a
battery and can provide greater range depending on the size of the
storage tank.

Disadvantages
• Ironically, hydrogen which is of such benefit environmentally when
used in a fuel cell, is also its greatest liability in that it is
difficult to manufacture and store. Current manufacturing processes
are expensive and energy intensive, and often derive ultimately from
fossil fuels. An effective hydrogen infrastructure has yet to be
established. Gaseous hydrogen storage systems are large and heavy to
accommodate the low volumetric energy density of hydrogen. Liquid
hydrogen storage systems are much smaller and lighter, but must
operate at cryogenic temperatures. Alternatively, if hydrogen is
stored as a hydrocarbon or alcohol and released on demand by way of
an on-board reformer, the storage and handling issues simplify, but
some of the environmental benefits are lost. • Fuel cells require
relatively pure fuel, free of specific contaminants. These
contaminants include sulfur and carbon compounds, and residual liquid
fuels (depending on the type of fuel cell) that can deactivate the
fuel cell catalyst effectively destroying its ability to operate.
None of these contaminants inhibit combustion in an internal
combustion engine. • Fuel cells suitable for automotive applications
typically require the use of a platinum catalyst to promote the power
generation reaction. Platinum is a rare metal and is very expensive.
• Fuel cells must not freeze with water inside. Fuel cells generate
pure water during the power generating reaction and most fuel cells
suitable for automotive applications use wet reactant gases. Any
residual water within the fuel cells can cause irreversible expansion
damage if permitted to freeze. During operation, fuel cell systems
generate sufficient heat to prevent freezing over normal ambient
temperatures, but when shut down in cold weather the fuel cells must
be kept warm or the residual water must be removed before freezing.
This normally entails bringing the vehicle into a heated facility or
the use of a localized hot air heating device. • Fuel cells that use
proton exchange membranes must not dry out during use and must remain
moist during storage. Attempts to start or operate these fuel cells
under dry conditions can lead to membrane damage. • Fuel cells
require complex support and control systems. Fuel cells themselves
are solid state devices, but the systems required to support fuel
cell operation are not. Of particular note is the requirement for
compressed air; this necessitates a high-speed compressor that
imposes a large parasitic load on the overall system. System
complexity increases significantly when the fuel cells are operated
in conjunction with an on-board reformer. • Fuel cell systems are
heavy. Fuel cells themselves are not excessively heavy, but the
combined weight of the fuel cells, their support systems and their
fuel storage is presently greater than for a comparable internal
combustion engine system. Systems that include an on-board reformer
are heavier still. Fuel cell systems are generally lighter than
comparable battery systems even though the battery systems require
less support equipment. System weight will likely continue to
decrease as the technology develops. Despite their weight, existing
fuel cell prototype vehicles have shown that systems can be made
sufficiently compact for automotive use. • Fuel cells are an emerging
technology. As with any new technology, reductions in cost, weight
and size concurrent with Key Points & Notes increases in reliability
and lifetime remain primary engineering goals.

4.2 Principle of Operation Key Points & Notes A fuel cell is an

energy conversion device that converts the chemical energy of a fuel
directly into electricity without any intermediate thermal or
mechanical processes. Energy is released whenever a fuel reacts
chemically with the oxygen in air. In an internal combustion engine,
the reaction occurs combustively and the energy is released in the
form of heat, some of which can be used to do useful work by pushing
a piston. In a fuel cell, the reaction occurs electrochemically and
the energy is released as a combination of low-voltage DC electrical
energy and heat. The electrical energy can be used to do useful work
directly while the heat is either wasted or used for other purposes.
In galvanic (or “voltaic”) cells, electrochemical reactions form
the basis in which chemical energy is converted into electrical
energy. A fuel cell of any type is a galvanic cell, as is a battery.
In contrast, in electrolytic cells, electrical energy is converted
into chemical energy, such as in an electrolyzer or electroplater. A
basic feature of fuel cells is that the electric current load
determines the consumption rate of hydrogen and oxygen. In an actual
systems application, a variety of electrical loads may be applied to
the fuel cell.

Working Principle A fuel cell is a device that uses hydrogen (or

hydrogen-rich fuel) and oxygen to create electricity by an
electrochemical process. A single fuel cell consists of an
electrolyte sandwiched between two thin electrodes (a porous anode
and cathode) Hydrogen, or a hydrogen-rich fuel, is fed to the anode
where a catalyst separates hydrogen's negatively charged electrons
from positively charged ions (protons) At the cathode, oxygen
combines with electrons and, in some cases, with species such as
protons or water, resulting in water or hydroxide ions, respectively
The electrons from the anode side of the cell cannot pass through the
membrane to the positively charged cathode; they must travel around
it via an electrical circuit to reach the other side of the cell.
This movement of electrons is an electrical current. The amount of
power produced by a fuel cell depends upon several factors, such as
fuel cell type, cell size, the temperature at which it operates, and
the pressure at which the gases are supplied to the cell Still, a
single fuel cell produces enough electricity for only the smallest
applications. Therefore, individual fuel cells are typically combined
in series into a fuel cell stack. A typical fuel cell stack may
consist of hundreds of fuel cells.
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