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Click HERE to see a video primer for fuel cells. Click here to download the RealPlayer plugin.

Hydrogen/Fuel Cells...

Fuel cells are so radically "hot" on the energy technology front today that they definitely deserve their own page! Themselves, fuel cells are old technology. For more than 30 years NASA has used them to power satellites and other spacecraft. Recently they've received enormous attention from the automobile and energy industries (read more about stationary power applications on the "Energy" page) as perhaps the answer to the world's pollution-less energy needs. Technically, they're as sublimely simple as they are amazing. Hydrogen gas and air (oxygen) react electrochemically to produce electricity, heat, and pure water. Or, in the case of zinc-air fuel cells, zinc reacts with air to produce electricity and zinc-oxide (a non-toxic, non-flammable, and easily recyclable substance). Absolutely no pollutants are produced -- just clean green power! Though not yet perfected to the point of mass production (onboard hydrogen storage and refueling infrastructure are still in question), the benefits of fuel cells are being sought worldwide by car makers and stationary power producers alike (see photos below).

Click HERE to see a video on the REAL reason the Hindenburg crashed (IT WASN'T HYDROGEN!). Get RealPlayer here.

"We believe that fuel cell cars have the potential in our life-time to end the 100-year reign of the internal combustion engine."

Ford of Europe Chairman Nick Scheele

Now you're really talkin'... a 4x4 SUV
with zero emissions? No way!? YES WAY!

The heart of it all... a fuel cell.
(courtesy of Manhattan Scientifics)

Now it's fun AND practical... a sporty
fuel cell commuter car by Nissan. :)

Start with something simple, say...
a fuel cell powered electric bicycle?

Now move up to something a little faster...
a hydrogen powered scooter from Canada.

This is a must have for anyone serious about using hydrogen as a fuel! An absolute wealth of information on hydrogen production, combustion, fuel cells, storage techniques, etc.. Case study after case study. SunWater has read it and re-read it... definitely worth its weight in oil! Click here to buy it now from Amazon.com.

The Quick 'n Clean on Fuel Cells...

Description

Advantages/Disadvantages

Fuel cell electrics are vehicles that use an electric motor like a battery electric, but instead of batteries, power is provided by a fuel cell. A fuel cell is an electro-chemical device that produces electricity from the chemical interaction of hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen gas and oxygen gas (from ambient air) are brought together after traversing a membrane. The by-products of the reaction are electricity, pure water, and heat. Performance characteristics are similar to those of electric vehicles. Experts worldwide view fuel cells as the best eventual replacement for the ICE!

Advantages: zero-emissions when hydrogen is used as the fuel (sadly, carmakers are looking to obtain hydrogen through reformation of hydrocarbon fuels (i.e. gasoline, methanol) and this reformation emits air pollution); quiet; low operating costs (similar to EV's); extremely efficient (90% compared to 30% for gas engines), although under load the efficiency decreases to 40 - 50%.
Disadvantages: relatively new technology - not yet consumer available (first model not due out until 2004 or 2005); storage methods (see below) still being developed, although high pressure CNG cylinders are long tested and proven extremely safe and reliable, as well as inexpensive; refueling infrastructure not yet in place

Techie FAQ's...
Q.How do fuel cells generate electricity?	A.(see diagram above) Hydrogen and oxygen gas are brought in contact with opposite sides of a special membrane (e.g. PEM or Proton Exchange Membrane; Nafion by Dupont). The nucleus of the hydrogen atom, one proton, is able to pass through the membrane while its electron is blocked. Once to the other side, two of the protons, in the presence of a special catalyst (e.g. platinum), want to combine with the oxygen to create a stable water molecule (H₂O), but lack the necessary two electrons. These electrons are forced to flow through a wire and load (e.g. motor, light bulb, etc.) to reach the oxygen side thereby causing current flow, or electricity doing work. Once to the oxygen side, the reaction is completed by the formation of a water molecule (and excess heat).
Q.How many different types of fuel cells are there?	A.There are three main categories of fuel cells: high temperature, low temperature, and metallic fuel cells... Low Temp: PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) - the most popular among auto makers; requires pure hydrogen and oxygen gases; uses a teflon membrane and platinum catalyst. DFMC (Direct Methanol Air Fuel Cell) - is able to use methanol (CH₃OH) directly rather than hydrogen gas; second most popular fuel cell among automakers. PAFC (Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell) - higher operating temperatures (200C); large and heavy; suited for stationary power generation; uses phosphoric acid rather than hydrogen gas. Alkaline Fuel Cells - the original fuel cells used by NASA on space missions; uses potassium or sodium hydroxide as the electrolyte; well suited for automobile applications. High Temp: SOFC (Solid Oxide Fuel Cells) - 800 to 1000C operating temp.; uses a solid fuel rather than gaseous. Molten Carbonate - 650C operating temp.; unique ability to internally reform hydrocarbon fuels (e.g. gasoline, methanol, ethanol, etc.); used for stationary power. Metallic Fuel Cells: Metallic fuel cells are fuel cells that don't use hydrogen at all, but rather a metal is the fuel. The most notable of these is the Zinc-Air fuel cell patented by Metallic Power. The cells operate at room temperature. The "fuel" is in the form of tiny balls, or pellets, of zinc metal. The zinc metal is mixed with a potassium hydroxide electrolyte solution and placed between two electrode plates. Air is introduced to one electrode causing a reaction between the zinc pellets and the hydroxide which liberates electrons. The electrons are collected on the opposite electrode plate. The result of the consumed zinc is ZnO, or zinc oxide, which is a non-toxic, non-caustic substance used in sunscreen and facial creme products. From here the ZnO is regenerated back into zinc using simple electrolysis with water. The entire fuel cycle creates no emissions whatsoever (not even water vapor), can be "recharged" using electricity (from renewable sources), and the fuel (zinc) can be re-used over and over again indefinitely! Refueling is accomplished by simply adding more zinc pellet/potassium hydroxide sollution via a "gas" tank, or, when the tank is empty, simply using the handy dandy home fuel regenerator to make more fuel from your ZnO "exhaust", without ever having to add more zinc! Power density on these light and inexpensive cells (much cheaper to make than hydrogen fuel cells) is sufficient to give a car a range of 300 miles traveling at 78mph before needing to refuel!
Q.What's so great about fuel cells? Why are they so popular?	A.There are many great advantages of fuel cells that have made them so popular. First and foremost, they produce NO pollution^and the fuel is renewable (i.e. can be recycled and used over and over indefinitely). The only thing coming out of the tailpipe of a fuel cell car is water vapor, or nothing at all in the case of Zinc-Air cells! Since the fuel, hydrogen or zinc, is renewable the world will never run out of it and there's more than enough to go around. No scarcity means no wars or monopolies. Secondly, they are incredibly efficient. An ICE (internal combustion engine), which burns fuel to generate mechanical energy, is only about 35% efficient. That means that of the 100 units of energy stored in the fuel, only 35 units are converted to mechanical energy (motion). The rest is lost as excess heat and noise. A fuel cell converts up to 80% of its stored chemical energy into electrical energy! That means for every gallon of fuel, you get twice as much useable energy as an ICE. Overall that means less waste and more "bang" for your buck! Oh yeah, and there is no "bang" since fuel cells are near silent in operation. :) Green, clean, and cost effective! ( when pure hydrogen is used as the fuel)
Q.What type of "fuel" do fuel cells use?	A.The most popular types of fuel cells use hydrogen or zinc as the fuel. Hydrogen is the simplest and most abundant element in the universe. Although abundant, hydrogen is rarely found in its pure form. Most often it's bonded to other elements to form molecules. Water (H₂O), for example, contains two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. Water is also one of the most abundant molecules on Earth. Zinc is one of the most abundant elements on earth. Metallic Power reports that "the first mile of the earth's crust contains 224 quadrillion tons of zinc, more than a billion times the permanent needs of all the vehicles on the earth combined! Because the zinc is recycled instead of consumed, total usage is merely the amount that the fuel cell contains when first installed."
Q.How is hydrogen made?	A.Hydrogen isn't actually "made", but rather derived from other substances. The two traditional methods are electrolysis and carbon fuel reformation. Electrolysis is the process whereby an electrical current is passed through water which causes the hydrogen and oxygen atoms to bubble to the surface as gas. Traditional electrolysis isn't terribly efficient and requires high electrical currents to be effective. Modern electrolysis using reversible fuel cells is much more efficient (70 - 80%). Basically, an electric current is fed into a fuel cell containing water and the gases are separated using the proton exchange membrane. Electrolysis has definite advantages over other methods in that no pollutants are produced and the process can be powered 100% by renewable energy (solar, wind, etc.). Carbon fuel reformation, or steam reformation, uses hot steam in the presence of air to cause the separation of carbon and hydrogen atoms. This process unfortunately produces carbon dioxide air pollution and is, ironically, the method being pursued most actively by auto makers. The advantages are that current refueling infrastructures wouldn't have to be altered and the fuel is in liquid form for ease of onboard storage. Sadly, this doesn't compensate for the disadvantages, namely air pollution and the reliance on non-renewable fuels (i.e. eventual scarcity and depletion along with the attendant international conflicts).
Q....Isn't there a better way to produce hydrogen?	A.Fortunately, YES! Recent research has yielded incredible advances in onsite hydrogen production. A company in Canada called Xogen has prototyped a revolutionary new method of electrolysis that requires no toxic electrolytes (traditional methods required the presence of potassium hydroxide in the water), uses much less electric current, and can function with any quality of water (from tap water to sea water)! Another company in California, HERI (HydroEnvironmental Resources), has reported a totally new method of hydrogen production from water. Their method uses no electric input, but rather a proprietary catalyst. The catalyst, when placed in contact with the water causes hydrogen gas to be released from the water. This process also purifies the subject water making it potable. The implications of this technology are staggering, especially for third world countries where safe water and clean power are exceedingly scarce! Both of these technologies would make it possible to use water as an onboard fuel while generating the hydrogen as needed for the fuel cells. Imagine filling your gas tank with tap water!
Q.How is the hydrogen stored onboard?	A.Although hydrogen is very rich in stored energy per atom (3 times more per pound than gasoline), it is sadly one of the most voluminous elements also. This means that, in storage, it takes up more space per atom than any other element on the periodic table. This has spelled difficulty for anyone attempting to store a useable amount of hydrogen in a small space (e.g. a typical gas tank). Traditional methods of hydrogen storage are to store it in a high pressure tank as a gas, or to cool it and store it as a liquid. The pressurized tank method involves high pressures and even then is difficult to store enough hydrogen to achieve a useable driving range (unless integrated into a hybrid vehicle). Liquid hydrogen requires extremely low temperatures (-423C) thereby making the storage equipment very expensive (although BMW is currently producing a liquid hydrogen version of their 735i sedan). Newer methods however show great promise! In addition to storing it as water, as explained above, other methods include using metal hydrides, carbon nanotubes, and in chemical compounds such as sodium borohydride (NaBH₄)^. Zinc-air fuel cells have none of the storage disadvantages of hydrogen. Zinc is non-toxic (like hydrogen) but unlike hydrogen zinc is non-flammable and very compact. (^see the company's website at: http://www.millenniumcell.com/)
Q.Why can't I buy a fuel cell car right now? When will I be able to? How much will they cost?	A.All of the technologies mentioned on this page are relatively new and are still under development. Some of the largest car and energy corporations in the world are collectively investing billions of dollars annually in research and development. As of early 2001, some of the companies have begun delivery of fuel cell units for stationary power generation. Fuel cell buses and delivery vehicles are already on the road in many major cities. Consumer ready fuel cell cars are still a few years off. The earliest projected ready date for a consumer fuel cell automobile is around 2004-2005. Companies cite refueling infrastructure and hydrogen generation and storage concerns as the major hindering factors. Cost estimations for 1st generation vehicles has been projected at around $40,000. The price is expected to drop as production increases and economies of scale come into effect. Still, the hydrogen dream can be lived now by those willing to tinker. Homepower magazine has many articles on do-it-yourself home hydrogen generation and storage. The American Hydrogen Association also offers classes on how to convert your gasoline car to run on clean hydrogen right in your own garage! Check'em out! :)

"We are at the peak of the oil age but the beginning of the hydrogen age. Anything else is an interim solution. The transition will be very messy, and will take many technological paths ...but the future will be hydrogen fuel cells."

Herman Kuipers

Royal Dutch Shell