ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Lecture-36 : Performance and

Limitations of Fuel cells

Electronics & Communication Engineering Department

PSIT Kanpur
ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Contents
1.1 Performance analysis of fuel Cells
1.2 Performance Characteristics
1.3 Limitations of fuel cells

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Performance Analysis
The theoretical maximum electromotive force (EMF) developed in a
fuel cell can be calculated with the help of Gibbs free energy as given
below
−∆𝐺
E= volts
𝑛𝐹
Where ∆G= change in Gibbs free energy in the reaction [J/mol]
n= No. of electrons per mole of fuel which take part in the
reaction (for hydrogen=2)
F= Faraday’s constant = 96487 coulombs/mole
Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering
ROE-086 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

The change in the Gibbs free energy in a chemical reaction is given by:
∆G = ∆H – T∆S [J/mol]
Where ∆H = change of enthalpy of total reaction [J/mol]
T.∆S = Amount of heat absorbed during a reversible process at constant
temperature [J/mol]
The voltage of fuel cell also depends upon temperature and pressure of 1
atmosphere, the value of E at 25ºC is 1.23 V and only 1.15 V at 200ºC. If pressure
increases the fuel cell voltage also increases.

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

ROE-086 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

The maximum efficiency is achieved in a renewable fuel cell is given by

∆𝐺 ∆𝑆
η= = 1- T
∆𝐻 ∆𝐻

Where ∆G = Change in Gibbs free energy in the reaction [J/mol]

∆H = Change in enthalpy by formation of 1 mole of liquid water from
H2 and O2 at 1 atmosphere and 25ºC.
The overall efficiency of fuel cell is given by multiplication of its thermal
efficiency and performance Loss factor.
ηoverall = ηthermal * (Loss factor)

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Performance Characteristics
The Carnot efficiency of any heat engine increases with the source
temperature for a given sink temperature.
𝑇1 −𝑇0
ηc =
𝑇1
The heat source temperature T1 if varied from 400 K to 1400 K, the performance
curve is plotted assuming heat sink temperature 300 K. If the fuel cell
temperature is equal to source temperature the efficiency decreases linearly with
temperature. The theoretical efficiency of H2O2 fuel cell as a function of
temperature is plotted.

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Fig. Fuel cell Carnot efficiency as a function of temperature

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Fig. Current-Voltage power characteristics of H2O2 fuel cell

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Limitations of Fuel Cells

• Expensive to manufacture due the high cost of catalysts (platinum).
• Lack of infrastructure to support the distribution of hydrogen.
• Hydrogen is expensive to produce and not widely available.
• A lot of the currently available fuel cell technology is in the prototype
stage and not yet validated.
• Must regulate the temperature of a hydrogen fuel cell to maximize its use.
• There are still some risks to the environment to consider with hydrogen
fuel cell.
Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering
ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

• There are transportation losses to consider with hydrogen as well.

• It is not currently a complete renewable energy resource.

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

ROE-O86 Renewable Energy Resources Unit-3

Thank You

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering