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Frontiers of Engineering Reports on Leading-Edge Engineering from the 2005 Symposium (2006) / Chapter Skim
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Fuel Cells: Current Status and Future Challenges
Pages 143-152

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From page 143...
... However, turning this idea into a practical means of energy conversion has proved to be elusive. A major technical and cost barrier has been implementation of liquid electrolytes, the basis for most commercial fuel cells (e.g., alkaline fuel cells, molten-carbonate fuel cells)
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From page 144...
... is oxidized to H2O and CO2 at the anode, while O2 is reduced to O2­ at the cathode. In both types of fuel cells, cells are normally assembled into multicell stacks to increase system voltage and provide a means of distributing gases (fuel and air)
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From page 145...
... They recover energy that is normally lost by the irreversible process of combustion. Thus, fuel cells offer a potential path toward overall reduction of fuel consumption that combustion simply cannot provide, even after many years of incremental improvements.
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From page 146...
... In particular, fuel cell systems are still too costly to be competitive with existing technology at current energy prices. Although this situation may change as fuel prices rise and capital costs come down with manufacturing improvements and economies of scale, fundamental technological barriers must also be overcome before cost reductions are likely.
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From page 147...
... . In SOFCs, Ni-cermet has very poor sulfur tolerance, especially below 800°C, which makes it unsuitable as a long-term SOFC anode (DOE, 2004a)
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From page 148...
... The microstructure of a PEFC electrode, for example, is still understood only in a very general sense; exactly how the catalyst, ionomer, and gas come together and affect performance is generally not well understood and thus not amenable to intelligent design. For example, one proposed strategy for improving the catalyst in PEFC cathodes is to concentrate Pt particles near the opening of the aqueous flow channel in the PFSA ionomer; at present they are distributed randomly throughout the electrode matrix.
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From page 149...
... . Recent work using nonlinear electrochemical impedance spectroscopy to resolve SOFC cathode reaction mechanisms may eventually improve our ability to diagnose how and why electrodes degrade and guide the selection of new materials and fabrications to mitigate degradation.
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From page 150...
... Successful advancement of fuel cell technology will require a sustained, long-term commitment to fundamental research, commercial development, and incremental market entry. REFERENCES Adler, S.B.
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From page 151...
... 2005. Three Dimensional Reconstruction of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Electrodes.
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Key Terms

  • fuel cell
  • oxide fuel
  • solid oxide
  • cell technology
  • capital costs

  • electrolyte fuel
  • solid state
  • energy technology
  • sofc stacks
  • national energy

  • allowable capital
  • state ionics
  • combined heat
  • electrochemical impedance
  • operating temperatures

  • nonlinear electrochemical
  • technology laboratory
  • west virginia
  • fuel infrastructure
  • fuel sources

  • pem fuel
  • fuel consumption
  • particular fuel
  • commercial fuel
  • fuel prices

  • alkaline fuel
  • improving fuel
  • prices rise
  • operating temperature
  • sofc electrodes


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