The idea of a fuel cell was first discovered in 1839 by Christian Friedrich Schönbein [64] and William Grove [27]. Independently from each other they provided the foundation for the development of many different kinds of fuel cells. Today’s fuel cells are mostly classified by the type of electrolyte used in the cells. The most common types are polymer electrolyte fuel cells PEFC (developed by W...

We demonstrate the use of a novel pulse (18)O-(16)O isotopic exchange technique for the rapid determination of the oxygen surface exchange rate of oxide ion conductors while simultaneously providing insight into the mechanism of the oxygen exchange reaction, which contributes to the efficient development of devices incorporating these solids, such as solid oxide fuel cells and oxygen transport ...

There are substantial barriers to the introduction of hydrogen fuel cells for transportation, including the high cost of fuel-cell systems, the current lack of a hydrogen infrastructure, and the relatively low fuel efficiency when using hydrogen produced from hydrocarbons. Here, we describe a solid oxide fuel cell that combines a catalyst layer with a conventional anode, allowing internal refor...

The use of cermets as fuel electrodes for solid oxide electrolysis cells requires permanent circulation of reducing gas, e.g. H2 or CO, so called safe gas, in order to avoid oxidation of the metallic phase. Replacing metallic based electrodes by pure oxides is therefore proposed as an advantage for the industrial application of solid oxide electrolyzers. In this work, full-ceramic symmetrical s...

Fuel cells are an emerging energy conversion device which offer improved efficiency, low noise and reduced emissions. Imperial College have been asked to evaluate fuel cell system options for autonomous vehicles, and to consider the impact of military relevant fuels on fuel cell performance. Discussions with Rolls-Royce and Dstl have recently agreed two classes of application; fuel cells for au...

This letter describes a method for forming Ru nanoclusters on oxide anode surfaces during the initial stages of solid oxide fuel cell operation, ielding improved anode performance without additional processing steps. Transmission electron microscope and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy ◦ bservations showed that Ru nanoclusters precipitated onto La0.8Sr0.2Cr0.82Ru0.18O3−δ surfaces after exposure...

Title of Document: ELECTROCHEMICAL OXIDATION KINETICS OF HYDROGEN AND HIGHER HYDROCARBON FUELS ON SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELLS. Oktay Demircan, Ph.D., 2007 Dissertation Directed By: Professor Bryan W. Eichhorn, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are promising electrochemical energy converting devices due to their ability to use not only hydrogen but also hydrocarb...