A fuel cell is a device that converts stored chemical energy from a fuel into electrical energy that can

be used by other devices [1]. The electro-chemistry in a fuel cell can be very complicated. In many fuel cells (like the one in this experiment) the fuel is hydrogen and the exhaust is water ( ). A simple illustration of a fuel cell can be seen in figure (1).

Figure 1: Illustration of a fuel cell [2]

In the figure above it can be seen that the hydrogen comes in on one side (anode) and oxygen comes in on the other (cathode). The electrons from the hydrogen separate forming protons and free electrons. The protons then flow through the electrolyte membrane separating the anode and the cathode. The free electrons flow through an electrically conductive path and return to the cathode side where they meet back up with the hydrogen protons and the income oxygen. They then form [1]. There are many different ways to measure the efficiency of a fuel cell. The thermodynamic efficiency can be calculated by equation (1) [1]. (1) This however is not the actual efficiency. This does not account for voltage losses or fuel utilization losses [1]. Two other types of efficiency are Faraday efficiency and energy efficiency. The Faraday efficiency (seen in equation (2)) is the ratio between the theoretical and experimental volume of hydrogen at a certain current from the fuel cell. (2) Where is the volume of hydrogen measured experimental and be seen in equation (3). (3) can

I is the current produced in amps, t is the time in seconds, ( , z=2 and F is Faradays constant ( calculated using equation (4).

is the molar volume of the gas ). The energy efficiency can be

(4) U is the voltage in volts, I is the current in amps, t is the time in seconds, is the gross calorific value of hydrogen ( ). After performing the experiment all the necessary values to calculate the Faraday efficiency and energy efficiency will be available.

References [1] O'Hayre, Ryan P. Fuel Cell Fundamentals. 2nd ed. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2009. Print. [2] Kaminski, Kreg. "Fuel Cells." Reich-Chemistry. Web. 31 Oct. 2011. <https://reichchemistry.wikispaces.com/Kaminski.Larson.energy.spring2010>.