Fuel Cell - Presentation For Class
Fuel Cell - Presentation For Class
The first demonstration of a fuel cell was by William Grove in 1839, using an
experiment along the lines of that shown in below Figures.
Fuel Cell
Electrode – Platinum
Electrolyte – Dilute acid
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At Anode - The hydrogen gas ionises, releasing electrons and creating
protons
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At Cathode - oxygen reacts with electrons taken fromthe electrode, and
Protons from the electrolyte, to form water
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For both these reactions to proceed continuously,
– Electrons must pass through an electrical circuit to the cathode.
– Protons must pass through the electrolyte.
●
An acid is a fluid with free Protons, that helps the reaction at cathode
Fuel Cell
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The current produced in the demonstration fuel cell is very small because of
– The low ‘contact area’ between the gas, the electrode, and the
electrolyte – basically just a small ring where the electrode emerges
from the electrolyte.
– The large distance between the electrodes – the electrolyte resists the
flow of electric current.
Fuel Cell
●
To increase the contact area
– The electrodes are usually made flat, with a thin layer of electrolyte
– The structure of the electrode is porous so that both the electrolyte
from one side and the gas from the other can penetrate it. This is to
give the maximum possible contact between the electrode, the
electrolyte, and the gas.
Fuel Cell
Electrode reactions and charge flow for an acid electrolyte fuel cell
Fuel Cell
Electrode reactions and charge flow for an alkaline electrolyte fuel cell
Fuel Cell
Activation Energy (minimum energy required to start a chemical reaction.)
If the probability of a molecule having enough energy is low, then the reaction
will only proceed slowly. The three main ways of dealing with the slow
reaction rates are
•The use of catalysts,
• Raising the temperature,
• Increasing the electrode area.
Fuel Cell
The voltage of a fuel cell is quite small about 0.7 V. This means that to produce
a useful voltage many cells have to be connected in series. Such a collection
of fuel cells in series is known as a ‘stack’.
Fuel Cell
Fuel Cell
Different Types of Fuel Cells
Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell
Because of the low operating temperature of the fuel cell and the
acidic nature of the electrolyte, noble metals are required for the
catalyst layer.
If the membrane is too dry, there will not be enough acid ions to carry
the protons.
If it is too wet (flooded), the pores of the diffusion layer will be blocked
and the reactant gases will not be able to reach the catalyst.
Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell
• Expensive catalyst
• Expensive membrane
The alkaline electrolyte has a great affinity for carbon dioxide and
together they form carbonate ions. These ions do not participate in
the fuel cell reaction and diminish its performance. There is also a
risk that the carbonate will precipitate and obstruct the electrodes.
Favourable features of Alkaline Fuel Cell for
EV/Hybrid vehicles
• cheap catalysts
• cheap electrolytes
• high efficiency
• low-temperature operation
Unfavourable features of Alkaline Fuel Cell for
EV/Hybrid vehicles
• Corrosive electrolyte
• Water management
Phosphoric acid fuel cell
PAFCs rely on an acidic electrolyte, like PEM fuel cells, to conduct
hydrogen ions. The anode and cathode reactions are the same as PEM
fuel cell reactions.
Phosphoric acid (H3PO4) is a viscous liquid that is contained by capillarity
in the fuel cell in a porous silicon carbide matrix.
The phosphoric acid electrolyte temperature must be kept above 42°C,
which is its freezing point.
Freezing and thawing the acid unacceptably stresses the stack. Keeping
the stack above this temperature requires extra hardware, which adds to
its cost, complexity, weight, and volume.
Phosphoric acid fuel cell
Another problem arising from the high operating temperature (above
150°C) is the energy consumption associated with warming up the stack.
Every time the fuel cell is started, some energy (i.e., fuel) must be spent
to heat it up to operating temperature and every time the fuel cell is
turned off, the heat (i.e., energy) is wasted.
Advantages and disadvantages of
Phosphoric acid fuel cell w.r.t use in
EV/Hybrid vehicles
The advantages of PAFC are its use of a cheap electrolyte, low operating
temperature, and reasonable start-up time.
The major difference from other fuel cells is the necessity to provide
carbon dioxide at the cathode. It is not necessary to have an external
source since it can be recycled from the anode.
Advantage of Molten Carbonate Fuel cell
w.r.t use in EV/Hybrid vehicles
The major advantage of high-temperature fuel cells is their capability to,
almost, directly process hydrocarbon fuels because the high temperature
allows decomposing them to hydrogen on the electrodes. This would be
a tremendous advantage for automotive applications because of the
present availability of hydrocarbon fuels. In addition, the high
temperatures enhance the kinetics to the point that cheap catalysts may
be used.
Disadvantage of Molten Carbonate Fuel cell
w.r.t use in EV/Hybrid vehicles
The carbonate is an alkali, and is extremely corrosive especially at high
temperatures.
It is unsafe to have a large device at 500 to 800°C under the hood of a
vehicle.
The fuel consumption associated with heating up the fuel cell is also a
problem, worsened by the very high operating temperature, and latent
heat necessary to melt the electrolyte. These problems are likely to
confine molten carbonate fuel cells to stationary or steady power
applications such as ships.
Disadvantage of Molten Carbonate Fuel cell
w.r.t use in EV/Hybrid vehicles
The carbonate is an alkali, and is extremely corrosive especially at high
temperatures.
It is unsafe to have a large device at 500 to 800°C under the hood of a
vehicle.
The fuel consumption associated with heating up the fuel cell is also a
problem, worsened by the very high operating temperature, and latent
heat necessary to melt the electrolyte. These problems are likely to
confine molten carbonate fuel cells to stationary or steady power
applications such as ships.
Solid oxide fuel cell
SOFCs conduct ions in a ceramic membrane at high temperature (1000 to
1200°C). Usually, the ceramic is a yttrium stabilized zirconia (YSZ) that will
conduct oxygen ions (O2-)
Advantages of Solid oxide fuel cell w.r.t use
in EV/Hybrid Vehicles
The very high operating temperature allows the use of hydrocarbon fuels
as in MCFCs.
SOFCs are not poisoned by carbon monoxide and that they process it
about as efficiently as hydrogen. The anode reaction is then
Disadvantages of Solid oxide fuel cell w.r.t
use in EV/Hybrid Vehicles
The very high operating temperature.
ceramic electrolyte is extremely brittle. This is a major disadvantage for
vehicular applications where vibrations are a common occurrence.
Thermal cycling further stresses the ceramics.
Direct Methanol Fuel Cell
Instead of Hydrogen, Methanol is used.
In the DMFC, both the anode and cathode adopt platinum or platinum
alloys as electrocatalyst. The electrolyte can be trifluoromethane sulfonic
acid or PEM.
Operating temperature is 50 to 100°C.
The chemical reaction in a DMFC is:
Advantages of using Direct Methanol Fuel
Cell w.r.t use in EV/Hybrid Vehicles
methanol is a liquid fuel that can be stored easily, distributed, and
marketed for vehicle application; hence, the current infrastructure of
fuel supply can be used without too much further investment.
So, for one mole of hydrogen used, 2N electrons pass round the
external circuit – where N is Avogadro’s number.
If the system is reversible (or has no losses), then this electrical work
done will be equal to the Gibbs free energy released .
So = −2F · E
Performance Characteristics of Fuel Cell
Performance Characteristics of Fuel Cell
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oGF7kIbtqI
Losses in fuel cell
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Activation loss
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Activation loss or activation overpotential is defined
as the potential loss that arises due to the kinetics
of Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and Hydrogen
oxidation reaction (HOR). Compared to the HOR,
the ORR is a very sluggish reaction, even on
platinum catalyst.
Losses in fuel cell
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Mass transfer loss or concentration losses
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The transport process is dependent on the
properties of the flow channel and the porosities of
the catalyst layer for gas phase flow of oxygen in
the presence of water vapor and liquid water
●
The anode is fed with pure hydrogen and it has high
binary diffusivity in water vapor, the mass transfer
loss on the anode side is also often neglected.
Losses in fuel cell
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Ohmic loss
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The ohmic losses in a fuel cell are a combination of
proton transport resistance through the fuel cell
membrane and the electronic resistance from the
bulk and interfacial contact of the electrical
components.
Performance of a fuel cell
Polarization curve variations
Factors affecting the polarization
curve
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Temperature
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Fuel cell polarization curves increase with
increasing operat-ing temperature.
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Higher temperature improves mass transfer within
fuel cell and results in a net decrease in cell
resistance (as the temperature increases, the
electronic conduction in metals decreases but the
ionic con-duction in the electrolyte increases)
Factors affecting the polarization
curve
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Pressure
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Fuel cell polarization curves typically increase with
increasing operating pressure.
●
Higher pressures help to force the hydrogen and
oxygen into contact with the electrolyte.
Factors affecting the polarization
curve
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Stoichiometry effects
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Fuel cell polarization curves increase with
increasing reactant gas stoichiometry.
Factors affecting the polarization
curve
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Humidity effects
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Sufficient gas stream humidification is essential to PEM fuel
cell operation since water molecules move with the
hydrogen ions during the ion exchange reaction.
●
Insufficient humidification water dehydrates the membrane
and can lead to cracks or holes in the membrane. This re-
sults in a chemical short circuit, local gas mixing, hot spots,
and the possibility of fire.
●
Conversely, excess humidification water leads to condensa-
tion and flooding within the flow field plates.
Reference