Direct Liquid Fuel Cells

Fundamentals, Advances and Future

Ramiz Gültekin Akay, Ayşe Bayrakçeken Yurtcan

• Publisher: Academic Press
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9780128186244
• eBook ISBN: 9780128187364
• Topic: Physical Sciences
• Subtopic: Energy

Direct Liquid Fuel Cells is a comprehensive overview of the fundamentals and specificities of the use of methanol, ethanol, glycerol, formic acid and formate, dimethyl ether, borohydride, hydrazine and other promising liquid fuels in fuel cells. Each chapter covers a different liquid fuel-based fuel cell such as: Anode catalysts of direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs), future system designs and future trends for direct ethanol fuel cells (DEFCs), development of catalysts for direct glycerol fuel cells (DGFCs), the mechanisms of the reactions taking place at the anode and cathode electrodes, and the reported anode catalysts for direct formic acid fuel cell (DFAFC) and direct formate fuel cell (DFFC), characteristics of direct dimethyl ether fuel cell (DDMEFC), including its electrochemical and operating systems and design, the developments in direct borohydride fuel cells, the development of catalysts for direct hydrazine fuel cells (DHFCs), and also the uncommonly used liquids that have a potential for fuel cell applications including 2-propanol, ethylene glycol, ascorbic acid and ascorbate studied in the literature as well as utilization of some blended fuels. In each part, the most recent literature is reviewed and the state of the art is presented. It also includes examples of practical problems with solutions and a summarized comparison of performance, advantages, and limitations of each type of fuel cell discussed. Direct Liquid Fuel Cells is not a typical textbook but rather designed as a reference book of which any level of students (undergraduate or graduate), instructors, field specialists, industry and general audience, who benefit from current and complete understanding of the many aspects involved in the development and operation of these types of fuel cells, could make use of any chapter when necessary.- Presents information on different types of direct liquid fuel cells.- Explores information under each section, for specific fuel-based fuel cells in more detail in terms of the materials used.- Covers three main sections: direct alcohol, organic fuel-based and inorganic fuel-based fuel cells

Chapter 1: Introduction to fuel cells

Ayşenur Öztürk^a; Ramiz Gültekin Akay^b; Serdar Erkan^c; Ayşe Bayrakçeken Yurtcan^{a,d,⁎ a} Faculty of Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, Atatürk University, Erzurum, Turkey
^b Faculty of Engineering, Chemical Engineering Department, Kocaeli University, Kocaeli, Turkey
^c Atombir Energy Technologies Laboratory Chemistry Informatics Software Automation Contact Electric Electronic Limited Company, Middle East Technical University Technocity, Ankara, Turkey
^d Nanoscience and Nanoengineering Research and Application Center, Atatürk University, Erzurum, Turkey
* Corresponding author

Abstract

Fuel cells (FCs) have been mentioned as an alternative energy technology in which the chemical energy of the fuel is directly converted into electrical energy. Fuel cell technology is progressing gradually with intense researches in the fields of material engineering, nanotechnology, transport phenomena, electrocatalysts engineering, etc., and it is now possible to use these systems in many stationary and portable applications. This chapter consists of four subsections. In the first part, a brief introduction to the history of fuel cells was given. Subsequently, the information on the development of fuel cell technology and the current state of these systems in recent years will be provided in the second part. The third part was dedicated to basic components of fuel cells (on the specialty of PEMFC). The last part was concerned about the basis of direct liquid fuel cells (DLFCs) in which the fuel (alcohols, acids, glycols) is in liquid form.

Keywords

Fuel cell history and technology; PEM fuel cell components; Membrane electrode assembly; Gas diffusion layer; Direct liquid fuel cells

Chapter outline

• 1.1 A brief history of the development of fuel cell (FC) technology
• 1.2 Fundamentals of FC technology
  • 1.2.1 Basic operating principles of a fuel cell
  • 1.2.2 Kinetics and losses
• 1.3 Basic components (on the specialty of PEMFC)
  • 1.3.1 Gas diffusion layer (GDL)
  • 1.3.2 Catalyst layer
  • 1.3.3 Polymer electrolyte membrane
  • 1.3.4 Bipolar plate
  • 1.3.5 Gasket
  • 1.3.6 Current collector
  • 1.3.7 End plate
• 1.4 Introduction to direct liquid fuel cells (DLFCS)
• 1.5 Conclusions
• References

1.1: A brief history of the development of fuel cell (FC) technology

Initial studies on fuel cell systems coincide with the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century. Although the importance given to fuel cells has increased in recent years, it has a history of approximately 150 years. Although the German chemist Christian Friedrich Schönbein and the Welsh chemical physicist Sir William Robert Grove both have a reputation for being the first researchers on the fuel cell, Sir William Robert Grove is mostly considered to be the inventor of the first fuel cell. But even before, the concept of a fuel cell was also attributed to Humphry Davy in the early 19th century (1802) for his observations and studies [1, 2]. Sir William Robert Grove created the “Grove Cell” and discovered that it could generate current flow from the electrochemical reaction between the oxygen and hydrogen gases by using platinum electrodes immersed in dilute sulfuric acid solution [1, 3]. Then by further developing the system, he connected the cells in series. In this integrated system, which he called the “gas battery” (1842), he observed a higher potential drop between the electrodes and discovered that more current was drawn through the cells connected in series [1, 2, 4]. This arrangement forms the basis of the fuel cell systems used today. The representative demonstration of the gas battery was given in Fig. 1.1[4].

Fig. 1.1 Basic demonstration of gas battery system [4].

Although the first fuel cell developed by Sir William Robert Grove was a major step forward for the introduction of this technology, much more had to be understood in order to implement fuel cells into practical applications. Grove stated the significance of the electrochemical active area in which three phases such as gas, electrolyte and electrode interact with each other. Friedrich Wilhelm Ostwald (1893), who is known as the founder of physical chemistry and a Nobel Prize Winner (1909), contributed a lot to the fuel cell field by theoretical explanations regarding the fuel cell operation principles. He explained the difference between the internal combustion engines and fuel cells in terms of energy efficiency. The first one has a lower capability comparatively to the second one regarding the energy conversion because of the Carnot Cycle limitations. In a fuel cell, direct conversion of the fuel chemical energy into elec...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• Contributors
• Preface
• Chapter 1: Introduction to fuel cells
• Chapter 2: Introduction to direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFCs)
• Chapter 3: Direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs)
• Chapter 4: Direct ethanol fuel cells (DEFCs)
• Chapter 5: Direct glycerol fuel cells (DGFCs)
• Chapter 6: Introduction to other organic fuel-based fuel cells
• Chapter 7: Direct formic acid and formate fuel cells (DF(A)FCs)
• Chapter 8: Direct dimethyl ether fuel cells (DDMEFCs)
• Chapter 9: Introduction to inorganic fuel-based direct liquid fuel cells
• Chapter 10: Direct borohydride fuel cells (DBFCs)
• Chapter 11: Direct hydrazine fuel cells (DHFCs)
• Chapter 12: Other possible fuels and possible use of blended fuels in fuel cells
• Chapter 13: Conclusions: Current state and future
• Index