CONTENT

1. Introduction 1. Fuel 2. Need of Alternative fuel 3. Alternative fuel 2. Discovery of Hydrogen 3. Hydrogen 4. Production of Hydrogen
5. Distribution of Hydrogen

6. Benefits of Hydrogen 7. Conclusion 8. Bibliography

INTRODUCTION
FUEL: The
main purpose of fuel is to store energy, which should be in a stable form and can be easily transported to the place of production. Almost all fuels are chemical fuels. The user employs this fuel to generate heat or perform mechanical work, such as powering an engine. It may also be used to generate electricity, which is then used for heating, lighting or electronics purposes.

FUEL CRISIS: A

fuel crisis is any great bottleneck (or price rise) in the supply of energy resources to an economy . With in short span we are going loose the significance of the fuels like petrol, diesel. By replacing these fuels by HYDROGEN we can continue the survival of the automobiles.

NEED OF ALTERNATIVE FUEL:

Current Supply of Fossil Fuels may be exhausted by the year 2030. By the year 2025, petroleum production will decrease dramatically. The political instability in the Middle East will cause the price of petroleum to continue to increase. The United States is becoming dependent on foreign nations for their petroleum needs and is, therefore, causing a decline in their status as a world leader. The United States Foreign Policy would not have to consider the OPEC Factor in making decisions concerning world affairs.

ALTERNATIVE FUEL:

They are known as non-conventional or advanced fuels , are any materials or substances that can be used as fuels , other than conventional fuels. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) defines an alternative fuel as a product that is substantially nonpetroleum which yields energy security and environmental benefits Conventional fuels include: F ossil fuels (petroleum (oil), coal , propane , and natural gas ), as well as nuclear materials such as uranium and thorium , as well as artificial radioisotope fuels that are made in nuclear reactors, and store their energy. Some well-known alternative fuels include biodiesel, bioalcohol

(methanol, ethanol, butanol), chemically stored electricity (batteries and fuel cells), hydrogen, non-fossil methane, non-fossil natural gas, vegetable oil, and other biomass sources

DISCOVERY OF HYDROGEN: A

favorite school chemistry experiment is to add a metal such as magnesium to an acid. The metal reacts with the acid, forming a salt and releases hydrogen from the acid. The first recorded instance of hydrogen made by human action was in the first half of the 1500s, by a similar method to that used in schools now. Theophrastus Paracelsus, a physician, dissolved iron in sulfuric acid and observed the release of a gas. He is reported to have said of the experiment, Air arises and breaks forth like a wind. He did not, however, discover any of hydrogens properties Turquet De Mayerne repeated Paracelsuss experiment in 1650 and found that the gas was flammable. Neither Paracelsus nor De Mayerne proposed that hydrogen could be a new element. Indeed, Paracelsus believed there were only three elements the tria prima salt, sulfur, and mercury and that all other substances were made of different combinations of these three(Chemistry still had a long way to go!). In 1670 Robert Boyle added iron to sulfuric acid. He showed the resulting (hydrogen) gas only burned if air was present and that a fraction of the air (we would now call it oxygen ) was consumed by the burning. Hydrogen was first recognized as a distinct element in 1766 by Henry Cavendish, when he prepared it by reacting hydrochloric acid with zinc . He described hydrogen as inflammable air from metals and established that it was the same material (by its reactions and its density) regardless of which metal and which acid he used to produce it. Cavendish also observed that when the substance was burned, it produced water. Lavoisier later named the element hydrogen (1783). The name comes from the Greek hydro meaning water and genes meaning forming hydrogen is one of the two water forming elements. In 1806, with hydrogen well-established as an element, Humphry Davy pushed a strong electric current through purified water. He found hydrogen and oxygen were formed. The experiment demonstrated that electricity could pull substances apart into their constituent elements. Davy realized that substances were bound together by an electrical phenomenon; he had discovered the true nature of chemical bonding.

is the simplest and most abundant element in the universe; it is number 1 on the periodic table of elements. At Earth surface temperatures and pressures, it is a colorless, odorless gas (H2). However, hydrogen is rarely found alone in nature. It is usually bonded with other elements. Very little hydrogen gas is present in Earth's atmosphere. Hydrogen is locked up in enormous quantities in water (H 2 O), hydrocarbons (such as methane, CH 4 ), and other organic matter. Efficiently producing hydrogen from these compounds is one of the challenges of using hydrogen as a fuel. Hydrogen also can be used to fuel internal combustion engines and fuel cells, both of which can power low- or zero-emissions vehicles such as fuel cell vehicles. Major research and development efforts are aimed at making hydrogen vehicles practical for widespread use. The simplest and lightest fuel is hydrogen gas. Hydrogen may contain low levels of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, depending on the source.

HYDROGEN: Hydrogen

HYDROGEN IS THE BEST OF ALL THE REST

Hydrogen is a stable element. Hydrogen can be produced from biomass (plant matter). This is excellent because the United States has huge agricultural resources. Hydrogen is renewable. Hydrogen is the most abundant element on earth making up 75 percent of our environment. A pound of hydrogen holds more energy than any other material. Hydrogen is clean burning great for our atmosphere. Fuel cell cars have no exhaust emissions. In its gaseous state, hydrogen is non-toxic and burns invisibly. Hydrogen is odorless no nauseating fumes to inhale.

HYDROGEN AS AN ALTERNATIVE FUEL: The

interest in hydrogen as an alternative transportation fuel stems from its clean-burning qualities, its potential for domestic production, and the fuel cell vehicle's potential for high efficiency (two to three times more efficient than gasoline vehicles). Hydrogen is considered an alternative fuel under the Energy Policy Act of 1992 . The energy in 2.2 lb (1 kg) of hydrogen gas is about the same as the energy in 1 gallon of gasoline. A light-duty fuel cell vehicle must store 11-29 lb (5-13 kg) of hydrogen to enable an adequate driving range of 300 miles or more. Because hydrogen has a low volumetric energy density (a small amount of energy by volume compared with fuels such as gasoline), storing this much hydrogen on a vehicle using currently available technology would require a very large tank larger than the trunk of a typical car. Advanced technologies are needed to reduce the required storage space and weight.

The main interest of hydrogen as an energy carrier is linked to Fuel Cells technology

PRODUCTION OF HYDROGEN: Hydrogen is an energy carrier, not an energy

source. Energy is required to separate it from other compounds. Once produced, hydrogen stores energy until it is delivered in a usable form, such as hydrogen gas delivered into a fuel cell. Because pure hydrogen does not occur naturally, it takes energy to manufacture it. There are different ways to manufacture it, such as, electrolysis and steam-methane reforming process. In electrolysis, electricity is run through water to separate the hydrogen and oxygen atoms. This method can be used by using wind, solar, geothermal, hydro, fossil fuels, biomass, and many other resources. The more natural methods of making electricity (wind, solar, hydro, geothermal, biomass), rather than fossil fuels, would be better used as to continue the environment-friendly process of the fuel. Obtaining hydrogen from this process is being studied as a viable way to produce it domestically at a low cost. Steam-methane reforming process extracts the hydrogen from methane. However, this reaction causes a side production of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide which are greenhouse gases and contribute to global warming. Even so, the current leading technology for producing hydrogen in large quantities is steam reforming of methane gas (CH 4 ). Hydrogen can be produced from diverse, domestic resources including fossil fuels, nuclear energy, biomass, and other renewable energy technologies. The environmental impact and energy efficiency of hydrogen depends greatly on how it is produced. The following are some ways to produce hydrogen. Many are in the early stages of development. Natural gas reforming"synthesis gas" is created by reacting natural gas with high-temperature steam or by partial oxidation. The synthesis gas is then reacted with water to produce hydrogen. Renewable electrolysisan electric current generated by renewable energy technologies, such as wind or solar, splits water into hydrogen and oxygen. GasificationCoal or biomass is converted into gaseous components and then into synthesis gas, which is reacted with steam to produce hydrogen. Renewable liquid reformingrenewable liquid fuels such as ethanol are reacted with high-temperature steam to produce hydrogen near the point of end-use. Nuclear high-temperature electrolysisheat from a nuclear reactor is used to improve the efficiency of water electrolysis to produce hydrogen.

 High-temperature thermo chemical water-splittinghigh temperatures generated by solar concentrators or nuclear reactors drive chemical reactions that split water to produce hydrogen. Photo biologicalmicrobes such as green algae consume water in the presence of sunlight, producing hydrogen as a byproduct. Photo electrochemicalphoto electrochemical systems produce hydrogen from water using special semiconductors and energy from sunlight. Natural gas reforming using steam accounts for about 95% of the approximately 9 million tons of hydrogen produced in the United States annually. This level of hydrogen production could fuel more than 34 million cars. The major hydrogen-producing states are California, Louisiana, and Texas. Almost all of the hydrogen produced in the United States is used for refining petroleum, treating metals, producing fertilizer, and processing foods. The primary challenge for hydrogen production is reducing the cost of production technologies to make the resulting hydrogen cost competitive with conventional transportation fuels. Government and industry research and development projects are reducing the cost as well as the environmental impacts of hydrogen production technologies.

PRODUCTION OF HYDROGEN

PRODUCTION OF HYDROGEN

PRODUCTION OF HYDROGEN FROM WATER: Many

technologies have been explored but it should be noted that as of 2007 "Thermal, thermo chemical, biochemical and photochemical processes have so far not found industrial applications. Only high temperature electrolysis of alkaline solutions finds some applications.

Electrolysis: Approximately 5% of industrial hydrogen is produced by electrolysis. Tw o types of cells are popular, solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOEC's) and alkaline electrolysis cells (AEC's). These cells optimally operate at high concentrations electrolyte (KOH or potassium carbonate) and at high temperatures, often near 200 C. Typical catalysts are yttrium -stabilized zirconium together with nickel. At the 243rd National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), 2012, it was described how heat from atomic pow er plants could be used. The IAE A helps with its Hydrogen Economic Evaluation Program (HEEP). Thermolysis: Water spontaneously dissociates at around 2500 C, but this thermolysis occurs at temperatures too high for usual process piping and equipment. Catalysts are required to reduce the dissociation temperature.

DISTRIBUTION OF HYDROGEN:

Most hydrogen used in the United States is produced at or very near where it is used, typically at large industrial sites. As a result, there is not yet an effective infrastructure for distributing hydrogen to the nationwide network of fueling that is required for widespread use of fuel cell vehicles . Currently, hydrogen is most often distributed in the following three ways, PipelinesThis least-expensive way to deliver large volumes of hydrogen is limited, with only about 700 miles of pipelines in the United States located near large petroleum refineries and chemical plants in Illinois, California, and the Gulf Coast. High-pressure tube trailersTransporting compressed hydrogen gas by truck, railcar, ship, or barge in high-pressure tube trailers is expensive and used primarily for distances of 200 miles or less. Liquefied hydrogen tankersCryogenic liquefaction enables hydrogen to be transported more efficiently over longer distances by truck, railcar, ship, or

barge compared with using high-pressure tube trailers, even though the liquefaction process is expensive.

BENEFITS OF HYDROGEN:

Hydrogen can be produced from diverse domestic resources, with the potential for near-zero greenhouse gas emissions. Once produced, it generates power without exhaust emissions in fuel cells. It holds promise for economic growth in both the stationary and transportation energy sectors. Increasing Energy Security Protecting Public Health and the Environment

Increasing Energy Security

The United States imports more than 60% of its petroleum, two-thirds of which is used to fuel vehicles in the form of gasoline and diesel. The demand for petroleum imports is increasing. With much of the worldwide petroleum reserves located in politically volatile countries, the United States is vulnerable to supply disruptions. No matter how efficient conventional vehicles become, some of the gasoline and diesel needed to fuel them will need to be imported. Hydrogen can be produced domestically from resources such as natural gas, coal, solar energy, wind, biomass, and nuclear energy. Used to power highly efficient fuel cell vehicles, hydrogen holds the promise of an end to the nation's "addiction to oil."

Protecting Public Health and the Environment

About half of the U.S. population lives in areas where air pollution levels are high enough to negatively impact public health or the environment. Emissions from gasoline and diesel vehicles such as nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, and particulate matter are a major source of this pollution. Hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles emit none of these harmful substances. Their only emission is H 2 O water. The environmental and health benefits are even greater when hydrogen is produced from low- or zero-emission sources such as solar, wind, and nuclear energy and fossil fuels with advanced emission controls and carbon sequestration. Because the transportation sector accounts for about one third of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, which contribute to climate change , using these sources to produce hydrogen for transportation can slash greenhouse gas emissions.

Important Facts about Hydrogen

About 10 percent of the weight of living organisms is hydrogen mainly in water, proteins and fats. Liquid hydrogen has the lowest density of any liquid. Solid, crystalline hydrogen has the lowest density of any crystalline solid. Hydrogen is the only element that can exist without neutrons. Hydrogens most abundant isotope has no neutrons. Anti hydrogen is the only antimatter element made so far, with atoms of anti hydrogen synthesized at CERN lasting for as long as 1000 seconds (almost 17 minutes). Each atom of anti hydrogen contains a positron (positively charged version of the electron) orbiting an antiproton (negatively charged version of the proton). Hydrogen is believed to be one of three elements produced in the Big Bang; the others are helium and lithium. We owe most of the energy on our planet to hydrogen. The Suns nuclear fires convert hydrogen to helium releasing a large amount of energy. Hydrogen forms both positive and negative ions. It does this more readily than any other element. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. Hydrogen is the only atom for which the Schrdinger equation has an exact solution. The first chain reaction discovered was not a nuclear reaction; it was a chemical chain reaction. It was discovered in 1913 by Max Bodenstein, who saw a mixture of chlorine and hydrogen gases explode when triggered by light. The chain reaction mechanism was fully explained in 1918 by Walther Nernst. Hydrogen reacts explosively w ith the elements oxygen, chlorine and fluorine: O2, Cl2, and F2.

Current Usages of Hydrogen as an Alternative Fuel for Automobiles

Honda Motor Company plans to have 50,000 fuel cell cars by 2010. Hydrogen to be used to run the fuel cells. The cars power and range of driving have increased over the past years. Fed-Ex and UPS plan to phase in hydrogen powered trucks over the next five years. General Motors has already designed and built model fuel cells and plan to have a production-ready hydrogen model available by 2010. Daimler-Chrysler has 100 fuel cell cars and buses in operation using hydrogen as their fuel. Thirty-six of the buses have 75,000 hours of operation and 1.1 million kilometers of travel. Both Chevron and Shell have opened hydrogen fueling stations in California and Washington D.C. Los Angeles will soon have 21 stations while San Francisco will have eight. Ford Motor Company has developed an engine that is optimized to burn hydrogen. The engine can reach an overall efficiency of 38 percent. This is about 25 percent more fuelefficient than a typical gasoline engine. The engine is comparable to Fords 2.3 liter engine used in the Ford Ranger. From 2000-2005, 65 light-duty trucks using fuel cells were placed into use in Los Angeles. The trucks have logged more than 220,000 miles.

Appearance and Characteristics

Harmful effects: Hydrogen is highly flammable and has an almost invisible
flame, which can lead to accidental burns.

Characteristics : Hydrogen is the simplest element of all, and the lightest. It is

also by far the most common element in the Universe. Over 90 percent of the atoms in the Universe are hydrogen. In its commonest form, the hydrogen atom is made of one proton, one electron, and no neutrons. Hydrogen is the only element that can exist without neutrons.

Hydrogen is a colorless, odorless gas which exists, at standard temperature and pressure, as diatomic molecules, H 2 . It burns and forms explosive mixtures in air and it react violently with oxidants. On Earth, the major location of hydrogen is in water, H 2 O. There is little free hydrogen on Earth because hydrogen is so light that it is not held by the planets gravity. Any hydrogen that forms eventually escapes from the atmosphere into space. Although hydrogen is usually a nonmetal, it becomes a liquid metal when enormous pressure are applied to it. Such pressures are found within gas giant planets such as Jupiter and Saturn. Jupiters high magnetic field (14 times Earths) is believed to be caused by a dynamo effect resulting from electrically conducting metallic hydrogen circulating as the planet rotates.

PROPERTIES OF HYDROGEN:
Combustion : Hydrogen gas is highly flammable and will burn in air at a very
wide range of concentrations between 4% and 75% by volume. Hydrogen gas forms explosive mixtures with air if it is 474% concentrated and with chlorine if it is 595% concentrated. The mixtures spontaneously explode by spark, heat or sunlight. The hydrogen auto ignition temperature, the temperature of spontaneous ignition in air, is 500 C(932 F). [ 1 6 ] Pure hydrogenoxygen flames emit ultraviolet light and are nearly invisible to the naked eye. The detection of a burning hydrogen leak may require a flame detector; such leaks can be very dangerous.

Phases
Compressed hydrogen Liquid hydrogen Slush hydrogen Solid hydrogen Metallic hydrogen

Combustion engines: They have been designed which burn hydrogen to release
its stored energy, instead of burning the non-renewable fuel petrol or diesel. Unlike petrol and diesel, when hydrogen is burnt only heat and water are

produced so no carbon dioxide or other pollutants are given off into the atmosphere. Stored chemical energy can be released from hydrogen to create power for vehicles using a hydrogen combustion engine. Hydrogen is stored in a fuel tank in the form of liquid hydrogen. By cooling hydrogen gas to a very low temperature hydrogen gas turns into a liquid. In traditional cars, combustion engines burn the non-renewable fuel petrol or diesel. However, when petrol and diesel are burnt they produce the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), which is released into the atmosphere and contributes to climate change.

Air : The air that surrounds us is an invisible substance made up of lots of

different gases. One of the gases is oxygen. The chemical formula for the element oxygen is O. Oxygen from the air is needed for combustion to take place. Air and hydrogen are mixed together in the cylinder, before they are ignited.

Water : Water forms when two hydrogen atoms are joined together with one
oxygen atom. When hydrogen is burnt in a combustion engine in the presence of oxygen from the air water is the only chemical that is given off. This makes hydrogen a clean source of energy. Water that is produced by a hydrogen combustion engine is released through the exhaust of a vehicle. Remember! Water was one of the sources of hydrogen

Storage of HYDROGEN: Hydrogen has a very low volumetric energy density at

ambient conditions, equal to about one-third that of methane. Even when the fuel is stored as liquid hydrogen in a cryogenic tank or in a compressed hydrogen storage tank , the volumetric energy density (mega joules per liter) is small relative to that of gasoline. Hydrogen has a three times higher specific energy by mass compared to gasoline (143 MJ/kg versus 46.9 MJ/kg). Some research has been done into using special crystalline materials to store hydrogen at greater densities and at lower pressures. A recent study by Dutch researcher Robin Gremaud has shown that metal hydride hydrogen tanks are actually 40 to 60-percent lighter than an equivalent energy battery pack on an electric vehicle permitting greater range for H2 cars. In 2011, scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory and University, working with the U.S. Department of Energy , found a new single-stage method for recharging ammonia borne, a hydrogen storage compound Hydrogen will need to be stored onboard vehicles, at hydrogen production sites, refueling stations and stationary power sites Hydrogen has very high energy content by weight (3x more than gasoline) and very low energy content by volume (4x less than gasoline)

HYDROGEN STORAGE TANK

Renewable HYDROGEN: Currently there are several practical ways of

producing hydrogen in a renewable industrial process. One is to use landfill gas to produce hydrogen in a steam reformer, and the other is to use renewable power to produce hydrogen from electrolysis. Hydrogen fuel, when produced by renewable sources of energy like wind or solar power, is a renewable fuel

HYDROGEN FUEL CELL

FUEL CELL: A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a
fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Hydrogen is the most common fuel, but hydrocarbons such as natural gas and alcohols like methanol are sometimes used. Fuel cells are different from batteries in that they require a constant source of fuel and oxygen to run, but they can produce electricity continually for as long as these inputs are supplied. Welsh Physicist William Grove developed the first crude fuel cells in 1839. The first commercial use of fuel cells was in NASA space programs to generate power for probes, satellites and space capsules. Since then, fuel cells have been used in many other applications. Fuel cells are used for primary and backup power for commercial, industrial and residential buildings and in remote or inaccessible areas. They are used to power fuel cell vehicles, including automobiles, buses, forklifts, airplanes, boats, motorcycles and submarines.

FUEL CELL
There are many types of fuel cells, but they all consist of an anode (negative side), a cathode (positive side) and an electrolyte that allows charges to move between the two sides of the fuel cell. Electrons are drawn from

the anode to the cathode through an external circuit, producing direct current electricity. As the main difference among fuel cell types is the electrolyte, fuel cells are classified by the type of electrolyte they use. Fuel cells come in a variety of sizes. Individual fuel cells produce very small amounts of electricity, about 0.7 volts, so cells are "stacked", or placed in series or parallel circuits, to increase the voltage and current output to meet an applications power generation requirements. In addition to electricity, fuel cells produce water, heat and, depending on the fuel source, very small amounts of nitrogen and other emissions. The energy efficiency of a fuel cell is generally between 40-60%, or up to 85% efficient if waste heat is captured for use.

SCIENCE OF HYDROGEN FUEL CELL:

Anode (-) and Cathode (+) on each side of the fuel cell, divided by an electrolyte Hydrogen gas is channeled through anode side; oxygen passes through cathode Platinum catalyst oxidizes hydrogen atoms into H + and electrons Electrons pass along external circuit; conduct electricity before entering cathode Electrolyte allows H + to pass into the cathode In cathode, catalyst combines H + , O 2 - and electrons, forming H 2 O and heat Anode: 2H 2 => 4H + + 4e Cathode: O 2 + 4H + + 4e - => 2H 2 O Net Reaction: 2H 2 + O 2 => 2H 2 O Exact opposite of electrolysis

Preset Day Applocations Of Fuel Cells:

Little-to-no pollution, doesnt need to be recharged 2500 fuel cell systems have been installed globally Used to power landfills and water treatment plants 50 fuel cell buses Every major automotive manufacturer has designed a fuel cell-powered vehicle Mercedes-Benz projects 40% efficiency in compact cars running on Hydrogen fuel cells Hydrogen Fuel Initiative (2003) Fuel cells require specific humidity, pressure, etc. Catalysts are pricey and sensitive to poisoning Difficult to produce hydrogen

 Difficult to store optimum amounts of Hydrogen If fuels other than hydrogen are used, some greenhouse gasses are emitted Very few cars currently running on hydrogen

FUEL CELL
The fuel is the anode The oxidant is the cathode The fuel and oxidant continuously flow through the cell An electrolyte separates the fuel and oxidant channels

Solid or liquid electrolyte that conducts protons Need catalyst at low temp

TYPES OF FUEL CELLS:

Fuel cells come in many varieties; however, they all work in the same general manner. They are made up of three adjacent segments: the anode, the electrolyte , and the cathode. Two chemical reactions occur at the interfaces of the three different segments. The net result of the two reactions is that fuel is consumed, water or carbon dioxide is created, and an electric current is created, which can be used to power electrical devices, normally referred to as the load. At the anode a catalyst oxidizes the fuel, usually hydrogen, turning the fuel into a positively charged ion and a negatively charged electron. The electrolyte is a substance specifically designed so ions can pass through it, but the electrons cannot. The freed electrons travel through a wire creating the electric current. The ions travel through the electrolyte to the cathode. Once reaching the cathode, the ions are reunited with the electrons and the two react with a third chemical, usually oxygen, to create water or carbon dioxide. The most important design features in a fuel cell are The electrolyte substance. The electrolyte substance usually defines the type of fuel cell. The fuel that is used. The most common fuel is hydrogen. The anode catalyst, which breaks down the fuel into electrons and ions. The anode catalyst is usually made up of very fine platinum powder. The cathode catalyst, which turns the ions into the waste chemicals like water or carbon dioxide. The cathode catalyst is often made up of nickel but it can also be a nonmaterial-based catalyst. A typical fuel cell produces a voltage from 0.6 V to 0.7 V at full rated load. Voltage decreases as current increases, due to several factors: Activation loss Ohmic loss (voltage drop due to resistance of the cell components and interconnects) Mass transport loss (depletion of reactants at catalyst sites under high loads, causing rapid loss of voltage). [ 9 ] To deliver the desired amount of energy, the fuel cells can be combined in series and parallel circuits, where series yields higher voltage, and parallel allows a higher current to be supplied. Such a design is called a fuel cell stack. The cell surface area can be increased, to allow stronger current from each cell.

WORKING OF FUEL CELL

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 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 hydrogens negatively charged electrons from the positively charged protons 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 When the oxygen and the protons combine with the electrons it produces water and heat Individual fuel cells can then be placed in a series to form a fuel cell stack The stack can be used in a system to power a vehicle or to provide stationary power to a building

Feature Of Fuel Cells:

Used to power personal electronic devices: cell phones, iPods, laptops Enough energy to run for days, or weeks (instead of hours) Potentially power all cars, airplanes, ships, etc. 60 million tons of carbon dioxide could be eliminated from yearly greenhouse gas production Development of cheaper and more reliable catalysts Higher demand = cheaper Economic crisis has greatly slowed technological advancements Past predictions for 2010 seem unlikely Hydrogen cannot be the only alternative fuel source to solve the energy crisis

 Many more years of research before mass production will be possible

Major Types of Fuel Cells

In general all fuel cells have the same basic configuration - an electrolyte and two electrodes Different types of fuel cells are classified by the kind of electrolyte used The type of electrolyte used determines the kind of chemical reactions that take place and the temperature range of operation Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) 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 Has a high power density, can vary its output quickly and is suited for applications where quick startup is required making it popular for automobiles Sensitive to fuel impurities

Direct Methanol (a subset of PEM) Expected efficiencies of 40% plus low operating temperatures between 120-190 degrees Also uses a polymer membrane as the electrolyte Different from PEM because the anode catalyst is able to draw hydrogen from methanol without a reformer Used more for small portable power applications, possibly cell phones and laptops

Phosphoric Acid This is the most commercially developed fuel cell It generates electricity at more than 40% efficiency Nearly 85% of the steam produced can be used for cogeneration 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

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 byproduct is then recirculated back to the solar-powered electrolyses beginning the process again

Importance of HYDROGEN for Fuel Cell

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 Hydrogen is a secondary energy resource, meaning it must be made from another fuel Hydrogen can be produced from a wide variety of energy resources including: o Fossil fuels, such as natural gas and coal o Nuclear energy o Renewable resources, such as solar, water, wind and biomass

Fuel Cell Technology Applicable Areas

Transportation Stationary Power Stations Telecommunications Micro Power

Transportation
All major automakers are working to commercialize a fuel cell car Automakers and experts speculate that a fuel cell vehicle will be commercialized by 2010 50 fuel cell buses are currently in use in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Australia Trains, planes, boats, scooters, forklifts and even bicycles are utilizing fuel cell technology as well

Stationary Power Stations

Over 2,500 fuel cell systems have been installed all over the world in hospitals, nursing homes, hotels, office buildings, schools and utility power plants Most of these systems are either connected to the electric grid to provide supplemental power and backup assurance or as a grid-independent generator for locations that are inaccessible by power lines

Telecommunications
Due to computers, the Internet and sophisticated communication networks there is a need for an incredibly reliable power source Fuel Cells have been proven to be 99.999% reliable

Micro Power
Consumer electronics could gain drastically longer battery power with Fuel Cell technology Cell phones can be powered for 30 days without recharging Laptops can be powered for 20 hours without recharging

Benefits of Fuel Cell technology

Physical Security Reliability Efficiency Environmental Benefits Battery Replacement/Alternative Military Applications

Physical Security
Both central station power generation and long distance, high voltage power grids can be terrorist targets in an attempt to cripple our energy infrastructure Fuel Cells allow the country to discontinue reliance on these potential targets

Reliability
U.S. businesses lose $29 Billion a year from computer failures due to power outages

 More reliable power from fuel cells would prevent loss of dollars for U.S. Businesses Properly configured fuel cells would result in less than one minute of down time in a six year period

Efficiency
Because no fuel is burned to make energy, fuel cells are fundamentally more efficient than combustion systems Additionally when the heat comes off of the fuel cell system it can be captured for beneficial purposes This is called Cogeneration The gasoline engine in a conventional car is less than 20% efficient in converting the chemical energy in gasoline into power Fuel Cell motors are much more efficient and use 40-60% of the hydrogens energy Fuel Cell cars would lead to a 50% reduction in fuel consumption Fuel Cell vehicles can be up to 3 times more efficient than internal combustion engines Fuel Cell power generation systems in operation today achieve 40% to 50% fuel-to-electricity efficiency In combination with a turbine, electrical efficiencies can exceed 60% When Cogeneration is used, fuel utilization can exceed 85%

Environmental Benefits
Fuels cells can reduce air pollution today and offer the possibility of eliminating pollution in the future A fuel cell power plant may create less than one ounce of pollution per 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity produced Conventional combustion generating systems produce 25 pounds of pollutants for the same electricity Fuel Cell Vehicles with hydrogen stored on-board produce ZERO POLLUTION in the conventional sense The only byproducts of these Fuel Cell vehicles are water and heat Fuel Cell Vehicles with a reformer on board to convert a liquid fuel to hydrogen would produce a small amount of pollutants, but it would be 90% less than the pollutants produced from combustion engines

HYDROGEN AS ALTERNATE FUEL & HYDROGEN FUEL CELL