Solar radiation and related terms, measurement of solar radiation, solar energy collectors-flate plate collector, air collector, concentrating collectors, application and advantages of various collectors, solar energy storage system (thermal, chemical, mechanical), solar pond, application of solar energy
2. CONTENTS
• History
• Hydrogen Energy
• Fuel Cell
• Importance Of Fuel Cell Technology
• Working Of Fuel Cell
• Types Of Fuel Cell
• Importance Of Hydrogen
• Hydrogen Production
• Applications
• Benefits
2
3. HISTORY
1838: discovered by German scientist
Christian Friedrich Schoenbein
1839: Demonstrated by Welsh scientistSir
William Robert Grove
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4. Hydrogen Energy
Hydrogen is the simplest and the most
plentiful element in the universe.
It's always combined with other
elements.
Hydrogen is high in energy, yet an engine
that burns pure hydrogen produces almost
no pollution.
NASA has used liquid hydrogen since the
1970s to propel the space shuttle and other
rockets into orbit.
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5. Hydrogen Production
The biggest challenge regarding hydrogen production is
the cost
There are three general categories of Hydrogen
production
Thermal Processes
Electrolyte Processes
Photolytic Processes
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6. IMPORTANCE OF HYDROGEN
Fuel Cells require highly purified hydrogen
as a fuel
Researchers are developing a wide range of
technologies to produce hydrogen economically from
a variety of resources in environmentally friendly
ways
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7. Why we need fuel cell?
Due to energy crisis all over the world.
Due to the issue of global warming.
Due to the unavailability of different renewable sources at each and every
place due to geographic condition.
Fuel cell provides an alternate efficient non polluting power
source that produces no noise and has no movingparts.
It is expected that by 2050 the global energy demand is going to rise by 2
to 3 times.
This calls for optimization of generation of energy through well- known
sources, preferably renewable energy for commercial exploitation.
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8. Classification Of Fuel Cells:
Classification of fuel cells is very difficult as several operational variable exists.
Based on the temperature range in which they operate: low temperature(25-100
C), medium temperature (100-500) , high temperature(500-1000) & very high
temperature(above 1000)
According to the type of electrolyte : aqueous, non aqueous, molten or solid.
According to the physical state of the fuel: Gas(hydrogen, lower hydrocarbons ),
Liquid(alcohols, hydrazine, higher hydrocarbons), Solid(Metals)
Primary fuel cell: Reactants are passed through the cell only once & the products
of the reaction being discarded. (H 2 – O 2 fuel cell )
Secondary fuel cell: Reactants are passed through the cell many times because
they are regenerated by different methods.( Nitric oxide
– chlorine fuel cell)
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9. Types of fuel cell
As per the fuel used the fuel calls are classified as follows.
Hydrogen
Fossil Fuel
Hydrocarbon fuel.
Alcohol fuel.
Hydrazine fuel.
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10. Introduction
It is an electrochemical device which
convert hydrogen and oxygen into water
producing electricity and heat in the
process.
It is much like a battery that can be
recharged while you are drawing power
from it.
It provides a DC voltage that can be used to
power motors, lights and any number of
electrical appliances.
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11. Fuel cells differ from conventional cells in the respect that active material
(fuel & oxygen) are not contained within the cell but are supplied from
outside.
Pure or fairly pure hydrogen gas would be preferred fuel for fuel cell.
Alternatively impure hydrogen obtained from hydrocarbon fuels, such as
natural gas , methane, LPG & liquid petroleum products can be used in fuel
cell as a fuel.
Efforts are going on to develop cells that can use carbon monoxide
as the fuel; if they are successful, it should be possible to utilize coal
as the primary energy source.
Main uses of fuel cells are in power production, automobile vehicles
and in special military use.
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12. WHAT IS A FUELCELL?
A Fuel Cell is an electrochemical device that combines
hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity, with water and
heat as its by-product.
Fuel cells are electrochemical cells consisting of two
electrodes and an electrolyte which convert the chemical
energy of chemical reaction between fuel and oxidant directly
into electrical energy.
overall reaction: oxidation of a fuel by
oxygen
2H2(g) + O2(g) 2H2O(l)
(Hydrogen) Fuel + oxygen water
12
13. WHY IS FUEL CELLTECHNOLOGY
IMPORTANT?
Since conversion of the fuel to energy takes place via
an electrochemical process, not combustion.
It is a clean, quiet and highly efficient process- two
to three times more efficient than fuel burning.
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14. How does a Fuel Cell work?
It operates similarly to a battery, but it does not run down nor
does it require recharging
As long as fuel is supplied, a Fuel Cell will produce both energy
and heat
14
15. A Fuel Cell consists of two catalyst coated electrodes
surrounding an electrolyte
One electrode is an anode and the other is a cathode
The process begins when Hydrogen molecules enter
the anode
The catalyst coating separates hydrogen’s negatively
charged electrons from the positively charged protons
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16. The electrolyte allows the protons to pass through to
the cathode, but not the electrons
Instead the electrons are directed through an
external circuit which creates electrical current
While the electrons pass through the external circuit,
oxygen molecules pass through the cathode
There the oxygen and the protons combine with the
electrons after they have passed through the external
circuit
16
17. When the oxygen and the protons combine with the
electrons it produces water and heat
17
18. Types of fuel cell
As per the fuel used the fuel calls are classified as follows.
Hydrogen
Fossil Fuel
Hydrocarbon fuel.
Alcohol fuel.
Hydrazine fuel.
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20. Hydrogen Oxygen Cell
40% KOH solution as electrolyte (Ion exchange membrane).
The membrane is non permeable to the reactant gases, hydrogen and oxygen,
which thus prevents them from coming into contact.
The membrane is however , permeable to hydrogen ions which are the
current carriers in the electrolyte.
The desired properties of an ideal ion exchange membrane electrolyte are:
High ionic conductivity.
Zero electronic conductivity
Low permeability of fuel and oxidant
Low degree of electro-osmosis.
High resistance to dehydration.
High resistance to its oxidation or hydrolysis and,
Mechanical stability
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21. Considerable amount of research has been carried out in a search for the
ideal membrane.
Interpolymers of polyflurocarbon and poltstyerene sulfonic acids have
been found to be quite satisfactory.
In order that electrolyte resistance be low as possible, a thin sheet of this
material (0.076 cm thickness) is used as the electrolyte.
An advantageous feature of this electrolyte is that it retains only a limited
quantity of water and rejects excess water produced in fuel cell.
This cell operates at about 40-60 ̊C. The thermodynamic reversible
potentials for the reaction is 1.23 volts at 25˚C.
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22. Fossil Fuel Cells
The most interesting fuel cells for the near future are modified hydrogen-
oxygen cells, in which a gaseous or liquid hydrocarbon is the source of
hydrogen.
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23. Coal may be serve as the primary energy source for fuel cells. Cells
based on fossil fuels have three main components.
The fuel processor which converts the fossil fuel into a hydrogen rich
gas.
The power section consisting of the actual fuel cell (or combination of
cells), and
The inverter for changing the direct current generated by the fuel cell
into alternating current to be transmitted to user.
In phosphoric cell utilizes a concentrated aqueous solution of
phosphoric acid as the electrolyte.
• The primary fuel is light hydrocarbon, such natural gas or nephtha.
• The operating temperature is 150 to 200˚ C and the discharge voltage is
0.7 to 0.8 volt.
• Each cell unit is only a few millimeters thick so that a large number can
be stacked in a package of reasonable size to produce the desired
voltage and power.
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24. MOLTEN CARBONATE FUEL CELL
Molten alkaline carbonate like sodium
bicarbonate is used as the electrolyte.
They can produce high powers up to
100 Mega Watts. Thus they can be
used as high power generators.
They can also be operated at high
temperatures up to 650 degree
Celsius.
They are not so expensive in
production and hence can be used for
commercial uses. It has an
efficiency of almost 55%.
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26. This is the leading cell type for passenger car application
Uses a polymer membrane as the electrolyte
Operates at a relatively low temperature, about 175
degrees
Sensitive to fuel impurities
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27. Phosphoric Acid
This is the most commercially
developed fuel cell
It generates electricity at more than
40% efficiency
Uses liquid phosphoric acid as the
electrolyte and operates at about 450
degrees F
One main advantage is that it can use
impure hydrogen as fuel
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28. Solid Oxide
Uses a hard, non-porous ceramic
compound as the electrolyte
Can reach 60% power generating
efficiency
Operates at extremely high
temperatures 1800 degrees
Used mainly for large, high
powered applications such as
industrial generating stations,
mainly because it requires such
high temperatures
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29. Alkaline
Used mainly by military and space programs
Can reach 70% power generating efficiency, but considered to
costly for transportation applications
Used on the Apollo spacecraft to provide electricityand
drinking water
Uses a solution of potassium hydroxide in water as the
electrolyte and operates at 75 -160 degrees
Can use a variety of non-precious metals as catalyst at the
anode and cathode
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31. Regenerative Fuel Cells
Currently researched by NASA
This type of fuel cell involves a closed loop form of
power generation
Uses solar energy to separate water into hydrogen and
oxygen
Hydrogen and oxygen are fed into the fuel cell
generating electricity, heat and water
The water by product is then recirculated back to the
solar-powered electrolyser beginning the process again
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33. Polarization in Fuel Cells:
• The diffrence between the theoretical
voltage and the Actual voltage is known as
the polarization. This is also
• called as overvoltage.
• The effect of polarization is to reduce the
efficiency of the cell from the theoretical
maximum.
• Significant drop in voltage and hence energy
loss takes place as the current density is
increased.
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34. There are mainly three types of polarization:
Activation Polarization.(Chemical polarization)
Resistance or ohmic Polarization and
Concentration Polarization.
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35. Activation Polarization
This is related to the activation energy barrier for the electron transfer process at the
electrode.
In fuel cells electrons are liberated and reaction is chemisorption
reaction.
At low current densities significant number of electrons are not
emitted, which results in such a potential loss.
This process requires that certain minimum activation energy supplied so that
sufficient number of electrons are emitted, this energy is supplied by the output of
the cell.
This loss is known as activation or chemical polarization.
This polarization may be reduced by using better electrode catalysts,
increasing surface area, and by raising operating temperature.
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36. Resistance Polarization
The voltage drop in linearly related to the current flow according to the ohm’s
law.
The internal resistance is composed of the electrode resistance, the bulk
electrolyte resistance and interface contact resistance between electrode and
electrolyte.
The loss due to resistance polarization is significant when current density is quite
large.
The reduction in the internal resistance is the main design criteria for low
resistance polarization losses.
The electrolyte resistance can be decreased usually by using more
concentrated electrolyte by closer spacing of electrodes and by increased
temperature.
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37. Loss due to resistance polarization can be reduced by:
Selecting proper shape of the electrode to have minimum contact
between electrode and electrolyte.
Reducing the gap between electrodes.
By using concentrated electrolyte.
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38. Concentrated Polarization
This type of polarization tends to limit the current drawn.
It is generally divided into two categories
Electrolyte side polarization: This is due to the slow diffusion in the electrolyte
causing a change in concentration at the electrodes.
This effect can be minimized by increasing the electrolyte concentration or by
stirring or circulating the electrolyte.
Gas side polarization: This is caused from slow diffusion of reactants through the
porous electrode to the reaction site or of slow diffusion of products away from the
reaction site.
The loss in voltage due to gas side polarization is reduced by using electrodes of
smaller pore size and by increasing temperature.
We have observed that all the three loses in a fuel cell are decreased by
increasing temperature , due to this a given cell is usually operated in practice
at the higher end of its temperature range.
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39. Fuel Cell Technology Be Used
Transportation
Stationary Power Stations
Telecommunications
Micro Power
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42. Advantages & Disadvantages:
Fuel cell system are environmentally.
High conversion efficiency .
Extremely low emission.
Noise less operations so readily accepted in residential areas.
Has no moving parts.
Availability to use at any location. So less transmission &
distribution losses.
No requirements of cooling tower as conventional plants.
Less space require as compared to conventional plants.
The main disadvantages of fuel cells are their high initial costs
and low service life.
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43. Disadvantages
Initial cost of installation is higher.
Comparative cost of energy storage of fuel cells is around twice that of
conventional sources of energy.
Energy produced by one fuel cell is around 0.7 volts.
High initial cost.
Life times of the cells are not accurately known.
Large weight and volume of gas fuel storage system.
High cost of pure hydrogen.
Hydrogen can be stored in lesser volume by liquefaction but
liquefaction itself require 30% of the stored energy.
Lack of infrastructure for distributing hydrogen.
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44. Application
The application of the fuel cell may be discussed in the following
areas.
Domestic Power
Central Power Station
Automotive Vehicles
Special Application
44
45. Some useful points regarding application:
The e.m.f. or voltage of a fuel cell depends to some extend on the
discharge current strength. The average voltage per cell is 0.75 volt.
By joining a number of cells in series and parallel can provide any
reasonable voltage and current.
Types of current that are generated by fuel cell.
If the fuel cells of reasonably low cost and long life can be produced , a
major use might be by electrical utilities for load leveling
A long term possibility is a central station power plant in which coal is
gasified and the gas is used to generate electricity directly by means of
fuel cells.
Such an installation is expected to have a higher efficiency for fuel
utilization than a conventional steam- electrical plant.
Portable generating sets seem to be a favorable field for fuel cells.
Here already fuel cells appear to be competitive as compared with
conventional sources. Low temperature fuel cells have a favorable
position for operating times of 3000 to 4000 hours per year, using
methanol as a fuel. 45
46. As we know that demand for power is variable. when the demand is less
than the rated output, the excess would be used to generate hydrogen by
electrolysis of water.
At the times when the load is greater than the rated power, the hydrogen
would be used in fuel cells to satisfy the additional demands.
By using fuel cell at the site of power, the transmission and distribution
cost would be reduced.
For new load centers different fuel might be utilized more economically in
fuel cells located near the new load centers.
Some fuel cells have been proposed for remote or rural areas or unattended
location , for mobile and emergency power sources, and for vehicle
propulsion.
The aluminum- air cell is of special interest for electrical vehicle
propulsion because of the high specific energy that is possible. The weight
of these batteries are same as conventional batteries.
More than this methanol –air and hydrogen – oxygen cell are also used for
vehicle propulsion.
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47. Many of the fuel cells currently under development are for special
application where convenience is of importance, cost is secondary.
For these application hydrogen is the superior fuel from the view point
of the reactivity and availability of invariant electrolyte, although it is
relatively costly.
It seems likely that hydrogen- oxygen and hydrogen carbon- oxygen
cells will be used to an increasing extent in special military & space
application.
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48. Applications
Fuel cells powered cars will start to replace gas
and diesel engine cars in about 2055.
Fuel cell powered buses are already running in
several cities.
This promising application will one day even
power our houses.
Fuel cells also make sense for portable power
like laptop computers and cellular phones.
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49. Telecommunications:
With the use of computers, the Internet, and communication networks steadily
increasing, there comes a need for more reliable power than is available on the
current electrical grid, and fuel cells have proven to be up to 99.999% (five
nines) reliable.
Fuel cells can replace batteries to provide power for 1kW to 5kW telecom sites
without noise or emissions, and are durable, providing power in sites that are
either hard to access or are subject to inclement weather.
Such systems would be used to provide primary or backup power for telecom
switch nodes, cell towers, and other electronic systems that would benefit from
on-site, direct DC power supply.
Nokia mobile with fuel cell battery
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