Originally published April 11 2005
US researchers discover highly-efficient new fuel cell design
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
US researchers investigating fuel cell design have discovered a new design that produces 50 percent energy efficiency. This is an impressive leap forward, as internal combustion engines are currently only 10-15 percent efficient and the best efficiency in previous fuel cells has been 29 percent. However, this new design has only been proven on a small scale and is still complex and expensive. This new fuel cell design uses the excess heat from a fuel cell reaction to produce even more electricity from the hydrogen-to-hydrocarbon reaction, while producing less carbon dioxide.
A new high temperature fuel cell may increase "well-to-wheel" fuel cell efficiency, US researchers reported in a new study in April 1 issue of journal Science.
This modified fuel cell allows excess fuel cell heat to drive the hydrocarbon-to-hydrogen reaction necessary to generate the hydrogen used to make electricity.
In the past, carbon build up or "coking" on nickel anodes within fuel cells prevented scientists from taking advantage of the energy efficient practice of using fuel cell heat to "reform" hydrocarbons into hydrogen.
But in the new fuel cell, a Ruthenium and Cerium "reformer layer" covering the anode converts hydrocarbons to hydrogen without depositing carbon on the anode, said Scott Barnett, professor at Northwestern University who led the research.
We have bypassed these technological hurdles by basically bringing the hydrogen plant inside and pairing it with a high-temperature fuel cell in one compact unit that has a fuel efficiency of up to 50 percent."
Internal combustion engines have a "well-to-wheels" efficiency of a mere 10 to 15 percent.
Current hydrogen fuel cells that require hydrogen plants and new infrastructure have been calculated to have a 29-percent fuel efficiency while commercial gas/electric hybrid vehicles already have achieved 32 percent.
That porous layer, which contains stabilized zirconia and small amounts of the metals Ruthenium and Cerium, chemically and cleanly converts the fuel to hydrogen.
This thin film catalyst, plus the addition of a small amount of oxygen, makes it a viable technology to pursue with further research.
For example, imagine a unit cheap enough to be used for auxiliary power in cars or diesel trucks.
But the researchers also noted that more work is necessary to prove the applicability of this approach to everyday fuels, such as gasoline, diesel and aircraft kerosene.
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