Fuel Cells: Innovation Meets Energy Efficiency

Fuel cells are a potential source of groundbreaking energy-saving and pollution-reducing technology for the generation of electrical power in homes, cars, and factories. A fuel cell can be defined as an electrochemical energy conversion device converting hydrogen and oxygen into electricity and heat. The fuel cell provides a direct current voltage that can be used to power various electrical devices including motors and lights.

While not commonly in use today, many analysts agree that fuel cell production and use are on the rise. Roland Berger Strategy Consultants recently forecasted that, "We will see the launch of fuel cell products in all three major markets [automotive, large factory, and private home] during the next four years."

In a proton exchange membrane fuel cell, hydrogen-rich gas is fed to the fuel cell, which, in turn, uses the catalyst to separate hydrogen molecules into hydrogen ions and electrons. The electrons are then pushed through an external circuit that conducts work, such as turning a motor.

Fuel Cells are usually characterized by the type of electrolyte used. An electrolyte is a nonmetallic electric conductor. There are various types of fuel cells in existence today:

• Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell: This is the simplest of fuel cells. Because they operate at low temperatures (about 176ºF/80ºC), they are able to warm up and operate quickly and do not require expensive containing structures. This type of fuel cell has the potential for use in passenger vehicles, buildings, and smaller applications, such as batteries.
• Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell (PAFC): This cell is the most mature technologically and is already in use in 200-kilowatt plants around the world. The PAFC plant operates at 400ºF/200ºC and produces heat for domestic hot water and heating. This type of fuel cell is commercially available today and used in large facilities such as hospitals, schools, and factories.
• Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell (MCFC): This cell is currently being tested and offers a higher fuel-to-electricity efficiency—about 60 percent. "MCFCs operate at higher temperatures, around 1,200ºF/650ºC, making them candidates for combined-cycle applications, in which the exhaust heat is used to generate additional electricity." (Fuel Cells 2000) MCFCs are effective in many types of uses, including stationary applications such as factories.
• Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC): This fuel cell, currently under demonstration, offers the reliability and stability of an "all-solid-state ceramic construction" (Fuel Cells 2000)(FETC). Because of its high temperature operation—1,8000F/1,000C—SOFCs allow more flexibility in fuel choice and are very effective in combined-cycle applications. SOFCs could be used in high-power applications such as central electricity generating stations.

Ford and Daimler-Chrysler plan to begin producing fuel cell powered cars by 2004. With the right technology, fuel cell powered automobiles have the potential of an 80 percent efficiency—that is, the fuel cell could potentially convert 80 percent of the hydrogen into electricity. Current technology, which uses methanol, rather than hydrogen, to power fuel cells, operates at about 24-32 percent efficiency and today’s gasoline-powered car operates at about 20 percent efficiency. Roland Berger estimates that automakers and others will invest as much as $5.2 billion in research by 2004 to develop and try to commercialize workable, low-cost fuel cell technology.

Several cities, including Vancouver, British Columbia and Chicago, are already making use of fuel cells in their buses. Originally, the fuel cell required to operate the bus effectively was quite large and cumbersome, but improved technology has allowed transit authorities to use a much smaller, quieter and more efficient fuel cell.

Portable electronics manufacturers are also researching and developing fuel cell technology. Batteries in machines such as laptop computers and cellular phones could potentially be replaced by small fuel cells (microfuel cells) that would provide a much longer life and be able to be recharged very quickly with liquid or gaseous fuels. Ohio’s Case Western Reserve University has developed a microfuel cell the size of an eraser, but its ten milliwatts of power falls short of the energy requirement of many devices, such as cell phones, which use significantly more power.

Micro fuel technology is also finding its way into diagnostic medical imaging. The Photobitt Corporation has manufactured a pill capsule that contains a micro camera intended to assist in diagnosing gastrointestinal tract maladies. The capsule is in FDA trials.

The private home of the future, especially those in rural areas, is undoubtedly a prime candidate for fuel cell technology. A recent article in Fuel Cells 2000 speculated that, "Their ability to stand alone also makes fuel cells a wise choice for rural power, in places where there are no established power grids and in areas that are inaccessible by power lines." Fuel cells for home use may use natural gas, propane, or methanol, say some experts, due to the difficulties inherent in using and storing the hydrogen in its pure form. Devices called reformers would transform these readily available fuels into hydrogen, which in turn powers the fuel cell.

Hospitals and factories also stand to benefit from large fuel cell power generation. They would generate power directly from hydrogen, but the heat and water produced in the process could be harnessed to produce even more power.

On the surface, it appears that fuel cells are the answer to the problem of conserving energy. The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) cites these advantages:

• Environmental Acceptability. The efficiency, quietness, and water self-sufficiency of fuel cells passes even California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District regulations—some of the strictest in the nation. A fuel cell’s overall efficiency is second to none with direct electric energy efficiency ranges from 40 to 60 percent (LHV).
• Distributed capacity. Distributed generation reduces the capital investment and improves the overall conversion efficiency of fuel to end use electricity by reducing transmission losses.

Despite these advantages, there are some significant manufacturing and implementation barriers:

• The lack of availability of hydrogen. Hydrogen, unlike oxygen in the air and gasoline in gas pumps, is not a readily available fueling substance.
• A recent Roland Berger Strategy Consultants study noted that hydrogen is not cost efficient. "Hydrogen so far is considered a value priced chemical ($12-$18/m³); however, for hydrogen to be an available fuel it has to be a commodity ($0.20/m³)."
• A reformer that turns hydrocarbon or alcohol fuels into hydrogen generally solves the problem of a hydrogen shortage. However, reformers generate heat and produce other gases besides hydrogen. In addition, the hydrogen that a reformer generates is not pure and thereby lowers the efficiency of the fuel cell.
• Even 3M, a corporation that is at the forefront of fuel cell production, notes that the cost of the materials needed to manufacture fuel cells is today much too high to make them practical for commercial use.

Nonetheless, the potential of a cost-efficient, easy-to-run fuel cell is alluring. Many companies, including 3M, Honeywell, GE, and DuPont, are currently racing to be the first to make practical fuel cells. DuPont, for example, opened a multimillion-dollar fuel cell technology center near corporate headquarters in Wilmington, DE and speculates that "more that 50 percent of a PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel-cell stack—the real transactional center of a fuel cell—can be made from DuPont materials…"

Meanwhile, 3M’s Membrane Electrode Assemblies currently provide select customers with cost-efficient energy solutions. GE Power Systems is currently producing and testing their fuel cell model—HomeGen. While, not currently commercially available, GE hopes to provide the HomeGen for private homes in the near future. Like its competitors, Honeywell is also working towards an inexpensive, energy-efficient fuel cell. It has contracted with the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy to "begin the first stages of development for a new type of ‘planar solid oxide fuel cell’ hybrid system," Honeywell seeks to create fuel cells that could be sited virtually anywhere.

Fuel cell technology has the potential for significant long-term impact on the economy and the environment. For fuel cells to take hold, companies must design new ways of producing fuel cells that are cost-efficient and practical for the public as well as industries. As Mahesh Lunani, Project Manager of Roland Berger’s Automotive Competence Center, said recently, "To get there, companies should develop a clear commercialization roadmap and form strategic relationships…They also need to leverage their experience across markets. To do all of this, they need continued support from capital markets."