Fuel Cells
First synthetic catalyst to use iron to split hydrogen gas
February 18, 2013 9:09 am | by Mary Beckman, PNNL | News | Comments
To make fuel cells more economical, engineers want a fast and efficient iron-based molecule that splits hydrogen gas to make electricity. Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have recently reported the development of such a catalyst. Made from a synthetic molecule, it is the first iron-based catalyst that converts hydrogen directly to electricity, and it might help make those fuel cells less expensive.
First synthetic catalyst to use iron to split hydrogen gas
February 18, 2013 9:09 am | by Mary Beckman, PNNL | News | Comments
To make fuel cells more economical, engineers want a fast and efficient iron-based molecule that...
Rust and water are used to store solar energy as hydrogen
November 13, 2012 9:44 am | News | Comments
Photoelectrochemical (PEC) tandem solar cells offer a way to produce hydrogen directly from...
Unleashing oxygen
April 30, 2013 9:39 am | by David L. Chandler, MIT News Office | News | CommentsFuel cells make electricity by combining hydrogen, or hydrocarbon fuels, with oxygen. But the most efficient types, called solid-oxide fuel cells, have drawbacks that have limited their usefulness—including operating temperatures above 700 C. Now, researchers have unraveled the properties of a promising alternative material structure for a key component of these devices.
Startup brings fuel cells to the developing world
April 24, 2013 2:41 pm | News | CommentsIn some parts of the developing world, people may live in homes without electricity or running water, but yet they own cell phones. To charge those phones, they may have to walk for miles to reach a town charging station. Now a startup company has created a simple, inexpensive way to provide electricity to the 2.5 billion people in the world who don’t get it reliably.
The “rebound” effect of energy-efficient cars overplayed
January 24, 2013 8:18 am | News | CommentsThe argument that those who have fuel-efficient cars drive them more and hence use more energy is overplayed and inaccurate, a University of California, Davis economist and his co-authors say in a comment article published in Nature.
How scientists are using silicon to produce hydrogen on demand
January 23, 2013 8:04 am | by Charlotte Hsu, University at Buffalo | News | CommentsSuper-small particles of silicon react with water to produce hydrogen almost instantaneously, according to University at Buffalo researchers. In a series of experiments, the scientists created spherical silicon particles about 10 nm in diameter. When combined with water, these particles reacted to form silicic acid and hydrogen—a potential source of energy for fuel cells.
Nanofibers clean sulfur from fuel
December 17, 2012 12:59 pm | News | CommentsSulfur compounds in petroleum fuels have met their nanostructured match. University of Illinois researchers developed mats of metal oxide nanofibers that scrub sulfur from petroleum-based fuels much more effectively than traditional materials.
A new breed of micro fuel cells
November 30, 2012 12:18 pm | News | CommentsEngineers at Yale University have developed a new breed of micro fuel cell that could serve as a long-lasting, low-cost, and eco-friendly power source for portable electronics. Major components of the new device are made of bulk metallic glasses, which can be finely shaped and molded using a comparatively efficient and inexpensive fabrication process akin to processes used in shaping plastics.
The hunt for electron holes: A molecular glance on solar water splitting
October 30, 2012 1:18 pm | News | CommentsHydrogen production by solar water splitting in photoelectrochemical cells (PEC) has long been considered the holy grail of sustainable energy research. Iron oxide is a promising electrode material, and now an international team of researchers gained in-depth insights into the electronic structure of an iron oxide electrode, while it was in operation. This opens up new possibilities for an affordable hydrogen production from solar energy.
Researchers develop process for making renewable liquid fuels
October 4, 2012 4:51 am | News | CommentsUsing simple technology developed primarily for producing electricity from hydrogen, a team of researchers has developed what could be a commercially viable, continuous process for converting biomass and electricity into renewable liquid transportation fuels.
New nanoparticle to turn yard waste into biofuel
September 5, 2012 4:43 am | News | CommentsA team of researchers has recently been successful in synthesizing and characterizing monodisperse gold-core silver-shell nanoparticles utilizing a bio-template that has potential as a water soluble catalyst for converting biomass such as dead trees, branches and tree stumps, yard clippings, wood chips, and even municipal solid waste into fuels.
Showing the way to improved water-splitting catalysts
September 4, 2012 5:05 am | News | CommentsScientists and engineers are working to find a way to power the planet using solar-powered fuel cells. Such green systems would split water during daylight hours, generating hydrogen that could then be stored and used later to produce water and electricity. But robust catalysts are needed to drive the water-splitting reaction. Chemists at Caltech have determined the dominant mechanism for cobalt catalysts, a cheaper alternative to platinum catalysts.
Engineers examine water-based methods for electricity generation
August 23, 2012 5:40 am | News | CommentsAs the world's energy demands increase, Yale University researchers are examining alternative and sustainable power generation techniques. The researchers have published extensively on using engineered osmosis to address the growing demand for energy, and a recent paper in Nature examines three water-based methods for electricity generation and the challenges that must be met before they can be used for widespread application.
Researchers probe invisible vacancies in fuel cell materials
August 22, 2012 11:34 am | News | CommentsKnowing the position of missing oxygen atoms could be the key to cheaper solid oxide fuel cells with longer lifetimes. New microscopy research from Oak Ridge National Laboratory is enabling scientists to map these vacancies at an atomic scale.
Engineering students build U.K.'s first hydrogen-powered locomotive
August 22, 2012 5:06 am | News | CommentsEngineering students and staff at the University of Birmingham have designed and built a prototype hydrogen-powered locomotive, the first of its kind to operate in the U.K. The narrow gauge locomotive is a hybrid design, combining a hydrogen fuel cell and lead acid batteries similar to the ones used in cars.
Self-charging power cell converts, stores energy in single unit
August 22, 2012 3:39 am | News | CommentsResearchers have developed a self-charging power cell that directly converts mechanical energy to chemical energy, storing the power until it is released as electrical current. By eliminating the need to convert mechanical energy to electrical energy for charging a battery, the new hybrid generator-storage cell uses mechanical energy more efficiently than systems using separate generators and batteries.
Autonomous vehicles, fossil-fuel free
August 14, 2011 8:00 pm | Award WinnersThe Cryo-Force Power-Cell System is an integrated, closed-loop liquid oxygen-liquid hydrogen fuel cell system that transitions unmanned underwater vehicles away from large-battery and fossil fuel technologies.
Coating keeps fuel cells vital
August 14, 2011 8:00 pm | Award WinnersExperts from the National Energy Technology Laboratory have developed a manganese-cobalt (Mn-Co) spinel coating specifically tailored for solid oxide fuel cell interconnects that prevent chromium poisoning of the cathode.
Non-flow sets fuel cell free
August 14, 2011 8:00 pm | Award WinnersThe Non-Flow-Through Fuel Cell Power System is a light-weight, gravity-independent, hydrogen-oxygen non-flow-through fuel cell power system that does not require atmospheric oxygen for reactions or the presence of air for removing wastewater.
Enabling fuel cell commercialization
August 31, 2007 8:00 pm | Award WinnersIn fuel cell assemblies, the flow field plates make up the bulk, by weight and volume, of the fuel cell stack, as well as being one of the most expensive components to manufacture. A research team at GrafTech International Ltd. (Lakewood, Ohio) has addressed this situation with the creation of GRAFCELL Expanded Graphite Flow Field Plates. Their high corrosion resistance, good electrical and thermal properties, light weight, and low production costs make these flow field (bipolar) plates a key enabling technology for the commercialization of fuel cells.
Battle-worthy membrane
August 31, 2004 8:00 pm | Award WinnersIn a joint effort, researchers from Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, and Battelle, Columbus, Ohio, have developed a low-cost, high-temperature polymer membrane dubbed Battellion for use in Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells.
